BY BETI ONU/AWKA
A Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), the Barr Chika Rita Okwuosa Foundation (BCROF), has appealed to the Anambra State government to take necessary actions to mitigate the suffering of those affected by flooding in the state.
The organization made this call yesterday during an interactive session with journalists in Awka, the state capital.
The programme coordinator of BCROF, Mrs. Anastasia Ezeolisa, while briefing journalists, said that the foundation wants the state government to review the 20-year-old Anambra State Emergency Management Agency (ANSEMA) Law to make it more proactive in addressing the challenges faced by victims.
“The state government should step in to mitigate flooding in the seven local government areas of the state. We are advocating for this so that people are aware of the hardships faced by those in flood-prone areas. We also want the government to understand that these people are suffering and need urgent action. We are not saying the government is doing nothing, but often, during disasters, the government provides palliative relief instead of addressing the underlying issues. We want the government to make budgetary allocations to alleviate the problems of those affected by such incidents,” she said.
“These seven LGAs are the food baskets of the state, and the government should make every effort to alleviate the problems there in order to sustain the food security of the state,” she added.
She also pleaded with the media to support the foundation’s call for a review of emergency laws to give immediate attention to victims. According to her, the foundation is focusing on flooding because it directly affects the people and reduces agricultural production in the state.
Also speaking at the briefing, the communications officer of BCROF, Francis Uyannah, said that the foundation wants the government to allocate funds to the ecological fund so that victims can be promptly assisted.
“We want the government to make budgetary allocations an annual process by presenting a budget for the ecological fund to the State House of Assembly each year. It should not only be in response to emergencies that we should focus on how to address these problems,” he said.
According to him, if the government can review security laws within a few weeks, it should also be able to review the 20-year-old ecological law of the state.
He explained, “The Anambra State ecological law states that before the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) can spend N500,000, the governor must approve it. If the governor is out of the state and there is a serious emergency requiring N2 million, the problem cannot be addressed until the governor returns. What happens to the victims in such a situation? The law must be amended to allow SEMA to respond to emergencies without waiting for the governor’s approval.”
