The South-South zone of National Emergency Management Agency
(NEMA) has advocated for a legal framework for the setting up of the state
equivalent to be able to discharge its duties efficiently and effectively.

NEMA’s Zonal Coordinator, Mr Umesi Emenike, made the
suggestion at a news conference in Port Harcourt on Friday.

“It is only Akwa Ibom that has legal backing for SEMA in the
South-South region; so we need such an instrument in all the states.”

He said that a proper legal framework with funding and
staffing would enable the agency to function properly.

He decried the poor emergency response to disaster in some
states in the South-South zone, adding that inadequate funding of SEMA hindered
progress in emergency matters.

‘’We need to work with the agency; I think if we have this
close relationship, there will be synergy in managing disasters.

‘’Most of the states and local governments, especially in
the zone, have no structure in place for crisis management,’’ he noted.

The coordinator said that NEMA had embarked on various
sensitisation programmes to enlighten the people in the zone on emergency
matters.

“We have educated them on solid waste management as part of
the agency’s efforts to reduce flooding in the region.

“Earlier this year, we started with issues like fire
sensitisation exercise and inauguration of disaster risk reduction (DRR) club
in secondary schools in the zone,” he said.

He said that the south-south zone of NEMA would continue to
work hard to mitigate disaster in the region, and called on all the state
governors to equip their SEMAs and prepare them to respond quickly to emergency
situations.