Dickson Condemns Humanitarian Affairs Minister Over Assessment of Bayelsa Flood

The Senator representing Bayelsa West in the National Assembly, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, has condemned in strong terms the unscientific assessment of the devastating effect of the 2022 flood in Bayelsa State.

Senator Dickson, a two-term governor of the state, was reacting to recent comments attributed to the Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu and his counterpart in the Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouk.

The Water Resources Minister, Adamu had said that the federal government would not declare a state of emergency in parts of the country ravaged by flooding because it has not been overwhelmed by the incident.

The minister had said that the flood had not wreaked enough devastation to warrant a declaration of emergency.

On her part, the Minister of Humanitarian Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Safiya Farouk said on Thursday that Bayelsa was not among the most affected 10 states by the flood in the federation while Jigawa is the most affected.

However, Senator Dickson described the assessments attributed to the ministers as insensitive, disrespectful and offensive not only to Bayelsa or the Ijaw nation but the people of all states affected by the flood.

He noted that while communities and indeed the entire state in the case of Bayelsa are submerged with critical infrastructure and people’s sources of livelihood destroyed, the federal government has not organised any meaningful relief exercise for the people.