The Senate on Thursday urged President Bola Tinubu to implement the recommendations of the Presidential Committee for the Development of a Comprehensive Plan of Action against Flooding.
The committee had recommended the establishment of a National Flood Management Council in Nigeria.
The agency is expected to serve as a central body responsible for coordinating flood management activities nationwide.
The Senate resolution followed the adoption of a motion by Senator Mukhail Adetokunbo Abiru (Lagos East).
The red chamber commiserated with victims of the flood and commended the governments of Lagos and Ogun states for their handling of the crisis occasioned by the flood.
The Senate also directed the National Emergency Management Agency to send relief materials to the victims of the flood in the affected communities in the two states.
It urged the Federal Government to convene a stakeholders’ meeting to x-ray the recurring situation of floods across the country to proffer a lasting solution
It also directed the relevant committees of the Senate to provide adequate funding for NIMET, the Hydrological Agency of Nigeria, and the River Basin Development Authorities to effectively carry out their responsibilities in line with their mandates,
In his motion, Abiru noted that several communities close to the coastlines in Ikosi-Isheri and Agboyi-Ketu in Lagos State and other communities in Ogun State have always experienced flooding whenever the Oyan River Dams are opened.
Part of the motion reads, “The recent release of water from the dam caused unimaginable havoc to residents’ property and livelihoods, particularly on Tuesday, October 24, 2023;
“The dam which crosses the Oyan River, a tributary of the Ogun River was commissioned on March 29, 1983, by Late President Shehu Shagari, and is operated by the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority, a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Water Resources;
“The residents of the areas have fled their homes and businesses, schools and religious centres have all shut down in the affected communities while in the Maidan area of Ikosi-Isheri, the water reportedly reached the neck region of an adult;
“The sad story is not different from the reports gathered at Caterpillar, Harmony Estates, and some parts of Channels TV road in Ikosi Isheri.”
Punch/Simeon Ugbodovon
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