The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, visited Bayelsa State on Tuesday, several days after this year’s floods had started receding.
Receiving her during a courtesy call in the Government House, Yenagoa, Governor Douye Diri said the minister’s visit was long overdue given the flood disaster in the state.
He told Farouq that she would have had a better perception of the flooding in the state if she had visited during the peak of the catastrophe, stressing that the ravaging floodwaters started receding before her visit.
Diri, represented by his deputy, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, said, “If you had visited us at the peak of the flood, you would have better appreciated what we as a government and people went through.
“Even now that the flood is receding, you will agree with me that its effect is beyond the handling of the state government. That is why we continue to appeal to the Federal Government and other well-meaning individuals and organisations for assistance.”
The governor pointed out that initially, the government and people of Bayelsa State were not pleased with remarks credited to the minister about the flood disaster in the state that Bayelsa was not among the 10 worst-affected states in the country.
According to him, the flood rose to over 4.5 metres above its normal level and caused unprecedented devastation; hence, the news that Bayelsa was not among the worst-hit states was unsettling and worrisome.
Diri, who thanked the Federal Government for the relief materials it sent to the state through the ministry, however, pointed out that some of the relief items were not officially channelled through the state government to the flood victims.
Empathising with the government and people of Bayelsa over the flood, Farouq disclosed that part of her visit to the state was also to roll out her ministry’s economic empowerment packages for beneficiaries in the state.
