- Residents Seek Urgent Govt Intervention
BY PRINCE EJAKPOMEVI
Residents of Okpanam Community in Oshimili North Local Government Area have been gripped by fear and uncertainty as the notorious Igwogwo gully erosion threatens to unleash fresh devastation with the imminent onset of the rainy season.
To this end, they are appealing for urgent intervention by the state government to tame the menace, which has long plagued residents of the Amachai area of Okpanam, destroyed livelihoods, and rendered life increasingly unbearable.
Addressing The Pointer today at the gully site, the Chairman, Amachai Landlords’ Association, Mr Chineye Okonkwo lamented that not much has been done to tame the gully, which started in the area around 2019.
He said that government officials and interventionist agencies and their partners had visited the area in the past, promising to salvage the situation, but had yet to live by their words as the gully continues its encroachment on buildings and roads.
‘’Two years ago, the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP) came and surveyed the area, promising that palliative measures would be taken pending funding from the federal government.
‘’We were made to believe that the Governor of Delta State, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori has paid N1bn as its counterpart funds for the project, but up till now, nothing has been done. So, we are pleading with the state government to come to our aid.
Also, a resident in the area, Mr Jude Ejakpomevi, recounted that the landlords in the area had undertaken several interventions to prevent the gully from doing further damage, but to no avail.
‘’We, the Amachai Landlords’ Association, have contributed money several times to build embankments and tame the erosion, but everything keeps collapsing. Now, we are appealing to the Delta State Governor, knowing he has done a lot for Deltans, to come to our aid’’.
Similarly, another resident in the area, Mr Solomon Okeliwu, whose house is close to the gully, feared that if nothing is done to address the gully, it might result in the loss of lives and property because thousands of homes and families stay around the gully.
Likewise, a landlord and retired civil servant, Mr. Olu Tony, said over 200 houses in the axis were at the risk of caving in as a result of the rampaging erosion, stressing that development had halted in the area because of the menace.
More so, a BetNaija shop owner very close to the gully, Mr Lawrence Omoko, said: ‘’since the erosion started to spread, many people in this area have left. My friends have advised me to move the shop, but I don’t have the money to moveand it’s my only source of income’’.
