Nigeria has faced the challenge of floods in the past couple of years, and the central city of Lokoja is one of the worst affected areas.
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The lawmaker representing Kogi East Senatorial District, Abubakar Sadiku Ohere, has called for immediate action to be taken towards addressing the problem of floods in the country.
This is as he expressed worry over flood incidents in Kogi State, which he described as the epicentre of floods in the country.
Ohere, who made the call on Wednesday in Abuja, while speaking to reporters, posited that if proper dredging of dams across waterways in the country is done, the issue of flooding will be reduced to the barest minimum.
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“We are appealing to Mr President through our motions and contributions in the chamber is that we need special intervention, such that will clear the waterways, particularly from Warri to Ajakuta, from Ajakuta to Lokoja, and from Lokoja to Baro and carry out proper drenching that will sustain it and this flooding menace will be reduced to the barest minimum.
“We have also recommended in our contributions that there should be small small dams along the waterways, particularly Lokoja up to Ajakuta towards Basa-Nge such that it will be taking off the volume of water that are in excess so that this water can be utilised during dry season farming.
“Then in another way, we are very hopeful that if we clear our waterway, we can improve our water and transportation system and that is why the Federal government set up the Inland Waterways Authority’s headquarters in Lokoja and this is what we are canvassing for and because of this challenge, the state government have committed huge sums of money on its maintenance.”
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Additionally, he pleaded with President Bola Tinubu to take immediate action to clear the waterways, particularly those that run from Warri to Ajaokuta, Ajaokuta to Lokoja, and Lokoja to Baro, as well as to properly dredge the rivers and construct the necessary dams to support it.
Speaking on recurring cases of building collapse across the country, the lawmaker attributed such incidents to quality of construction materials, especially rods. To this end, he demanded that the Ajaokuta steel factory in Kogi state be revived to enable Nigeria start manufacturing high-quality building materials locally.
On the issue of building collapse, he urged the government to strengthen the regulatory bodies like the Council for the Regulation of Engineers in Nigeria (COREN), the Architects Registration Council of Nigeria (ARCON), and others, that monitor buildings to identify those that are at risk of collapse.
“The issue of building collapse is becoming worrisome, it is becoming a national issue, and the problem is emanating from the poor quality of materials.
“The government should strengthen the monitoring agencies that are involved in monitoring the buildings and identify such buildings that are prone to collapse such that we can carry out tests on them in order to save lives and properties.
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“The abandoned Ajaokuta Steel Project has made builders resort to cutting corners with attendant tragedy of structure collapse.
“It is a worthy project that will facilitate development of the country across the various sectors and most importantly, serve as panacea for the incessant problem of building collapse in the country through production of quality and affordable iron and steel builders and construction firms.
“Its completion will also facilitate industrialisation of the country as well as solved the problem of epileptic power supply with electricity generation from its already completed Thermal Plant,” Ohere said.
