Are they profiting from floods?
Yes so many government top officials are benefitting from it, like the Minister of Humanitarian Affair and Natural Disaster and the head of NEMA are the major beneficiaries from this natural disaster. The money that would be donated for the flood victims through these offices wouldn't be used for the flood victims. Only 10% would be brought out and that is why you see that the victims are always frustrated and vulnerable during this period.
it wasn't as disastrous as the 2012 one, which claimed many lives and properties. After that, there was the 2022 flood, and now we're hearing about another one to come this 2023.
2022 flood was something else and more disastrous than 2012,if you look at the difference, it shows ten years difference, which makes me to keep wondering if by 2032, it will repeat itself. I was in Bayelsa during these two disastrous period, and I experienced both. At 2012, I had a project in Bayelsa State and suddenly after two weeks the flood came and it was all like a joke. I didn't take to my heels out of the state fast and before I knew it the road was damaged and destroyed by the flood which made it impossible for me to leave the state.
Last year, was very bad because the government didn't provide camps for the victims and the water level was higher than that of 2012. Victims had no option than to forcefully open the locked government schools within their reach for shelter and some were render homeless. Palliatives that was donated to these flood victims wasn't given to them but were hoard in a government ware house, leaving the flood victims to fend for themselves and their children, when they know that the whole state is submerged in water and all businesses and schools was closed. During these flood period,there is always hyper inflation in those states,because the price of goods will be very costly, due to lack of access road to bring them in, commodities becomes scarce with a higher demand,and the greedy ones among the traders will take the advantage of the condition of things to triple their prices.
What has caused the increase in disastrous floods, and can't the government do something to mitigate the issue?
Excessive rainfall causes the increase in floods that can be disastrous. The water is stored in the dam,like we have a Kanji dam where most of the rainfall stores and that is what is used to generated electricity for our usage. When this dam fills to the brim,it is likely to spill off water and for this not to be constant,the damn will be opened so that water can move down to the oceans. In Nigeria, the water passes through River Niger to the ocean down in the South South region, especially Bayelsa state that shares boundary with the Atlantic ocean.
It is only the communities that the River Niger runs through that do experience the flood because the river will be filled up and flow into the communities. So my advice is that Government should build drainages in such areas and communities that will help the easy flow of water. Then the small rivers and lakes that rain water have washes sand into,to make it not deep as before,should be dredge so that they will be able to contain more water and not overflowing into the communities.