Incessant flooding and the role of public enlightenment

[FMINigeria]

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            By Oragwa Lovenda

There are floods and there are floods.   Since I was born, and here in Nigeria, no flood can be compared to that of 2012, where we helplessly watched our farmlands washed away and crops destroyed mercilessly by floods during that rainy season.

The memory is still very fresh, the "rivers and lakes", cars and people had to swim through; men with trouser rolled up knee high in order to wade through the ankle deep pools of water at the Fougeroll area near the Oil Mill market, its counterpart area of First Bank, Aba road and their environs in Port Harcourt after the rains; of agonizing traffic hold-ups, stretching to kilometers due to the effect of flooding of the roads.

It started like a dream when the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET), predicted heavy rainfall that would cause floods inimical to the economy of the country.    Both government and people paid no attention and did nothing, at least to minimize the ugly effect of the approaching holocaust.

Suddenly, it happened, not like before, when the floods were restricted to few fresh water riverine axis of the country, but now to 27 out of the 36 States of the Federation.   The flood is better imagined than experienced.   The devastated areas included Ahoada area of River State, Ikoyi area of Lagos State, Lokoja area of Kogi State, to mention but a few.

Makeshift emergency camps sprang up; some schools were turned into camps.   All tiers of government started running helter skelter for solutions.   Corporate bodies and concerned individuals, also ran round for relief materials; ranging from household ware to foodstuff of all kinds.  Whether these got to their right destinations or not, is a story for another day.  Yet, in my understanding, we did not learn.

With my heart still bleeding, I want to say that, some Nigerians, used this opportunity to amass wealth to themselves by siphoning funds and selling some of the relief materials meant for the flood victims without batting an eyelid.  How many people accounted for the billions of naira released by both governments and concerned individuals?

How many, out of the 170 million Nigerians know about NIMET, not to talk of their predictions?   Yet this country has all it takes to inform and educate people at the grassroots who are presently confused and cannot assist themselves in the area of floods and its preventive measures.

Information offices, both at the Federal and State levels, were primarily given the responsibilities of public enlightenment.   They train and retrain their Information Officers for public enlightenments on Government policies and programs as well as gather information as feedback to governments.

They have Land-rover vans properly equipped with all facilities for the purpose of public enlightenment.  One wonders why this all important function has been relegated to the very background.

The idea of public enlightenment campaign is very crucial in this regard.   There is need to carry the rural dwellers along in whatever plans we have for the environment.   If we neglect them, we are not likely to succeed.

All Nigerians are supposed to know the role expected of them to curb the menace of flood.  The role of government and the governed and other environmental hazards is complimentary to achieving the best for the masses.  Public enlightenment is a veritable instrument for creating awareness and mobilizing the masses towards adopting new lifestyles and social behaviour that encourage healthy environment.   But unfortunately, Governmental public enlightenment has been declared archaic, unfashionable and moribund.

Today, we remember with nostalgia, the ubiquitous green vans of the Federal Information Centers in all States of the Federation.  They used to traverse the nooks and crannies of the country, dishing out pro-government information accompanied by audio-visuals.   They used to meet the people and their leaders at village squares, winning their support for government programs and projects.

Flood is predominantly caused by excessive rains, faulty drainage designs and unsavory social habits leading to drainage blockage.  Whenever heavy rain coincides with high tides, tidal waters flow back into the channels through the outflows causing excessive flooding.

There is an information gap.   The people need to be properly informed.   They suffer because of lack of public enlightenment and proper mobilization.  The people need to be told that they are partly responsible for the floods.   Feedback needs to be channeled to governments as to their own role in curbing the menace of flood.

Where are those seasoned Public Enlightenment Officers from Federal Information Centers?   Have they become scarce commodity?   Or are they suffering from poor funding?   Let the Centers come alive.   As funding improves, facilities will emerge and public enlightenment will assume its rightful place in Governmental public relations.   Both Government and the governed will be the happier for it.  So help us God.

Oragwa Lovenda wrote in from Federal Information Resource Centre, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.                                                                                       

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Federal Ministry of Information (FMI) Nigeria