Attention of the Federal and the Delta State Governments has again been drawn to the urgent need to save Aboh town, headquarters of Ndokwa East Local Government Council of Delta State from devastating perennial flooding.
An environmentalist and two time Commissioner in Delta State, Omordi Dr. George Ugbomah, said the flooding had continued to impact negatively on the livelihood of people in the locality.
Speaking in an interview, Dr. Ugbomah described the development as dangerous, stressing that the rampaging water into Aboh Community had seriously affected the people.
Ugbomah, a Political Scientist and former Chairman, Board of Governing Council, Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-uku, explained that consequences of increasing siltation of the River Niger were enormous.
He said indigenes and residents have been crying out over the years for government intervention by creating channels that would house the volume of water coming from the upper Niger into the ocean.
The former Commissioner stated that Aboh and Ndoni in Rivers State are border towns, naturally separated by the River Niger, but gradually being closed up with sand that people can now walk across.
Ugbomah warned that the speed in which flood will overrun Aboh town if there is flooding this year would be very unimaginable, saying de-silting the area at least 100 meters from the bank of the river would go a long way to addressing the problem.
The then Commissioner for Environment and later Works, maintained that it is high time government take concrete action to save the town from total submergence.
Stressing that a stitch in time saves nine, Dr. Ugbomah also called for intervention of international organizations in addressing the environmental crisis.
He said, “I want to call on the federal, state and local government to create enabling mechanisms for water to flow into the upper Niger, rather than flowing into Aboh town.
“It is very very disturbing and I think government agencies, even international agencies must come to the aide of the people.
Continuing, Dr Ugbomah stated, “It is an issue that has caused a lot of concern and it will be something glorious if government intervenes to prevent the devastating consequences the people might face if we have flooding in 2024.
“The water can easily seek a level and the whole town will be overrun. We are tired of saying the same thing every year and nothing practical is done”, Ugbomah stressed.
He pointed out that the people are mostly farmers, noting that a nation that wants to develop should not toy with the agricultural sector.
“Residents of Aboh town have continually suffered from the devastating effects of flood which does not only render them homeless but also affect their source of livelihood.
“Something practical must be done this time around to solve the environmental challenges. The people of Aboh will heave a sigh of relief if concrete steps are taken”, Ugbomah who is presently a guest lecturer at Dennis Osadebe University, Asaba, emphasized.
He promised to keep reaching out to authorities, especially through the mass media, until something concrete is done to save Aboh town from the problem of perennial flooding which he said had continued to breed pains and poverty in the locality.