Flooding: Kwara govt warns against indiscriminate dumping of refuse, others
Following the incessant flooding, the Kwara State Government, through the Ministry of Environment, has warned the state’s residents against dumping refuse along water courses and desilting surrounding drainages, amongst other preventive methods to avert further crisis.
In a statement by the Press Secretary of the ministry, Kamaldeen Aliagan, Hajia Nafisat Musa Buge, the Commissioner for Environment, describes the recent flooding as a global phenomenon which can be attributed to the effect of climate change as a result of natural phenomenon as well as human activities, also urged the residents of the state to stay calm over the trends currently being experienced in the volume, duration and pattern of rainfall which has led to massive flooding, saying it is a temporary situation which will go with time.
The statement furthered that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq-led administration was deeply concerned about the impending flood situation while taking necessary proactive measures to ensure public safety in curbing the anomalies, including continuous dredging of Asa River, construction of embankment, desilting of drainages across the state, provision of additional waste bins, expansion of the dump site for proper waste disposal, encouragement of wastes recycling, irrigation system for Farmers and regular advocacy and sensitisation on environmental issues via the media and interfaces with relevant stakeholders and enforcements whenever necessary.
The Commissioner for Environment, Hajia Nafisat Musa Buge, while empathising with affected families, said, ‘Our heart goes to families that are worst hit by this natural phenomenon, who have either lost properties or their beloved ones’ while advising the residents to take safety tip which includes relocation to higher grounds, avoiding travelling when it is raining and heeding to evacuation instructions by Ministry of Environment and the State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) that will be moving round to provide support to the affected Communities.
“We want to use this medium to implore individuals, NGOs and CSOs to kindly support the government in climate change adaptation and advocacy, as this is crucial for us to build resilience and save our environment.
“There is a need for all of us to take ownership of our surroundings and encourage others to do the same, as the environment gives us what we put in it.”
“Members of the public are reminded that as our activities destroy the environment, our society keeps degrading, and this in turn, comes to haunt us all. It is, therefore, our collective responsibility to improve the quality of our environment, to make it a better place for all and sundry,” the statement concluded.
