By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum and governor of Gombe State, Muhammad Yahaya, yesterday told disaster management agencies to collaborate extensively with governments and other stakeholders to prevent a recurrence of flooding as experienced in 2022.
This is as he said the governors of the northern region will jointly work with others to find lasting solution to the menace banditry in the area.
Governor Yahaya attributed the devastating flood that was witnessed last year that caused loss of lives and economic hardship to poor sanitation, harmful farming practices and deforestation.
Speaking to State House correspondents after meeting behind closed doors with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the governor said, “We would not like a repeat of what happened last year…So all hands must be on deck. NiMET, the states, NEMA and whoever has an interest in the environment has to come together to solve the problem.”
According to him, an inadequate response by emergency management agencies aggravated the impact of the 2022 flooding. Therefore, he called for urgent action to address the trend.
Recall that the Nigeria Meteorological Agency had identified specific local government areas in Gombe State as having a higher risk of flooding as the 2023 rainy season intensifies.
He said preventing a recurrence would take a concerted effort from all stakeholders.
“The problem of flooding is a national issue now. Global warming and climate change are affecting the world, so we are strategizing. We would not like a repeat of what happened last year to do the same this year.
“But in whatever we do, we must be proactive and reactive. We have not acted in the way that we solved all the problems of last year, and this year’s has started.
“So we need to double. We’ll do some backtracking and move at double pace to catch up with the current trends and do the needful. So, all hands must be on deck to solve the problem,” the Governor said.
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