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Flood: Rivers Begins Distribution Of Relief Materials To IDP Camps
The Rivers State Task Force on the 2022 Flood Disaster Management, has commenced an on-the-spot, one-on-one assessment and evaluation of the level of damage and devastation caused by what could be best described as coastal flood.
The task force has also kicked off the distribution of urgently needed relief materials, including medical supplies, to cushion the effects of flooding on the people.
Coastal flood is caused by strong winds or storms that move towards a coast or waterline during high tide.
The Tide investigations show that when powerful waves breach the coast’s dune or dike, the area is usually flooded.
Coastal areas with fewer defenses and lower elevation are the most affected.
Speaking during the visits, the Chairman of the committee, Dr. George Nwaeke, directed that the Rivers State Mobile Clinic should be stationed at the IDPs camps for immediate medicare pending when adequate centres would be put in place.
On arrival, the members of the committee stopped at the Ahoada East section of the East-West Road where the ravaging flood had totally cut-off a lane of the dualcarriage way.
At this point, the Chairman of the committee, who doubles as the Permanent Secretary, Special Services Bureau, Office of the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. George Nwaeke; Secretary of the committee and former commissioner in the state, Barrister Inime Aguma; and the Chairman of Ahoada West Local Government Area, Evangelist Hope Ikiriko, respectively, addressed stranded commuters and motorists who had been on that spot for about two days with perishable goods destroyed.
They assured them that the state government would immediately begin the distribution of relief materials to affected residents while adequate arrangements were being made to evacuate stranded people to higher grounds.
Afterwards, the team moved to Ula-Ehuda community, the access to the Odiokwu clan in Ahoada West Local Government Area.
At the scene, the committee resolved to immediately provide speed boats for the evacuation of stranded community dwellers.
Another point of call was at Edeoha Community where the affected persons reported that the flood swept through their community about two days earlier.
They also catalogued their immediate and long term needs to the committee, which assured them of government’s readiness to provide succour to the victims of the flood.
The committee further went to inspect the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camp in Ahoada East Local Government Area headquarters.
At the location, the committee noted that the affected persons had started reporting to the camp under the supervision of the council Chairman, Hon Ben Eke.
After inspecting and addressing the agonised and devastated victims of the flood, the committee promised to commence the distribution of materials ranging from food items, mattresses to other relief materials to cushion the negative impact of the flood on the people.
Similarly, the Rivers State Task Force on the 2022 Flood Disaster Management also paid a visit to Erema Primary School I and II, in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, where Internally Displaced people were camped.
On arrival, the Chairman of the local government area, Hon. Vincent Job, told the flood victims that the committee was set up by the Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, to ameliorate the sufferings of the affected people and bring succour to the challenges they were faced with.
It was gathered that the IDP camp has a total of 1,100 people with few of them sick.
However, on arrival, the medical team of the committee provided medical treatments to the sick.
Also, the committee took boat to Ndoni to see displaced persons and houses that had been submerged by flood.
After assessing and taking photos, they were taken to the IDP Camp close to River Niger where the inhabitants were camped on a sand filled area.
Speaking at the site, the Chairman, Dr. George Nwaeke, said Governor Nyesom Wike, in his magnanimity, inaugurated the committee to provide relief materials and medical aid to cushion their sufferings.
On her part, the Secretary of the committee, Barrister Inime Aguma, said the committee has a special concern for the women and children in the IDP camps, adding that the initiative of having a mobile clinic was to ameliorate their sufferings.
She said the committee was in touch with the local government chairmen, to provide medical aid, food, shelter and facilitate their immediate evacuation from anywhere that was completely flooded.
In his remarks, the Chairman, Community Development Committee in Ndoni community, Mr. Patrick, pleaded for the Federal Government to also come to their aid.
Furthermore, the Director General of Pension Board, Ndoni Zone, Mr. Samuel, commended the good gesture of the Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, for the fund approval he has made to alleviate the sufferings and pain of Ndoni people.
Also speaking, the LG Chairman, Hon. Vincent Job, thanked the governor of Rivers State, for setting up the committee, and promised the people that the committee would start bringing relief materials as soon as possible.
Afterwards, the committee visited Ibocha and Egbema community to ascertain the level of flood and devastation in the area.
In the same vein, the committee visited the Palace of His Eminence, Barrister Nwachukwu Nnam Obi III, the Oba of Ogbaland.
Speaking at the palace, Chairman of the Rivers State Flood Management 2022, Dr. George Nwaeke, sympathised with the King and his subjects over the flood situation that has ravaged the area.
He said the state governor has inaugurated the committee to alleviate the sufferings and bring succour to the people of the area.
Responding, King Nwachukwu Nnam Obi III, thanked the governor for his commitment and responding briskly whilst he commended the committee for hitting the ground running.
Meanwhile, the King has promised to constitute a local committee at the community level to liaise with Rivers State Government on flood management for easy distribution of relief materials.
By: Nelson Chukwudi
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.