From Okwe Obi, Abuja, Rose Ejembi and Scholastica Onyeka, Makurdi
National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said more than 300 people have died as a result of flood and other natural disaster.
NEMA also predicted more disaster would hit the country in the coming days, lamenting the agency gets, at least 50, alerts per day.
Its Director General, Mustapha Ahmed, who stated this at a one day strategic workshop with disaster risk management stakeholders, said the situation would prevent the country from meeting the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals deadline.
“This year, the flood that has hit this country is the worst. More than 50 alerts in a day. We get more than hundred and something communities hit in one day.
“The situation is very bad and it keeps going on. But we pray in the next few weeks thing will rescind.
“But disaster has really hit hard. It is worse than 2012 and the same are still going up based on seasonal prediction and annual flood outlook released by NiMET and NIHSA.
“The figures are still going up and communities are seriously affected. I don’t have the figures accurately but I think over 300 lives have been lost so far.
Meanwhile, Benue State government has again lamented the plight of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) saying it’s unthinkable to keep IDPs in camp for over five years.
Executive Secretary, Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Dr. Emmanuel Shior, who spoke during the monthly food distribution to IDPs in the state, recalled recent attacks in Logo Local Government Area where 400 persons were displaced and over 200 others who were also displaced on Naka road, Kucha Utebe area, rice mill and other places. He said the state is planning on expanding IDP camps to solve the problem of infrastructural deficits.
“Because of the huge population of IDPs, it is not easy for the state government to cater for the IDPs alone. We have shared the concern that the Federal Government has neglected the humanitarian crisis in Benue which also has another leg which is crisis of infrastructure.”