Floods: Rep Laments Displacement Of 150 Delta Households

A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Nicholas Ossai, has lamented the devastation caused by floods in communities in Delta State.

According to Ossai, over 150 households have been displaced while about 90 per cent of Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta has been submerged by the floods.

Ossai, who represents Ndokwa/Ukwuani Federal Constituency in Delta, while briefing journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, noted that the communities are often prone to serious environmental disaster as a result of constant coastal flooding and erosion from the River Niger.

He said, “Since the past two weeks, the Ndokwa-East communities of Delta State have been bedevilled by constant and frightening downpour, being accompanied by excessive flooding and erosion that is seriously and presently wreaking havoc in the communities.

“This unprecedented heavy downpour has aggravated the already existing and saturated wetland of the communities, which is occasioned by repeated ocean surges due to perennial flooding.

“The affected communities are Ossissa, Onyah, Ase, Ushie, Ibedeni; Asagba, Aballa-Uno, Agballa-Obodo, AgballaOshimili, Uchi, Okpai, Onuaboh, Inyi, Benekuku, Aboh, Onyah, Asaba-Ase, Ibrede, Ashaka, Afor, Abalagáda, Umuolu, Igbuku, Obettim, Obodo-Okolafa, Iyadama,0nuogboko, UtagbaOgbe, Utagba-Uno, Ogume, Onitsha-Ukwuani, Akarri, Umuolu, just to mention a few.

“Schools, farmlands, health centres, places of worship have seriously been affected and over 150 households have been rendered homeless, particularly children and women, and more are still being affected daily.

“About 90 per cent of the communities in the entire Ndokwa East LGA has been submerged, and worse still is the deplorable economic conditions of the peasant farmers in these agrarian communities.”

Ossai, therefore, urged the House to direct the Ecological Fund Office to conduct an environmental survey, with a view to addressing the excessive flooding in the affected communities.

He also urged the National Emergency Management Agency to urgently provide relief materials for the flood victims in accordance with Section 6 (j) of NEMA Act.