By Our Correspondent
As community leader appeals to Chevron, NDDC, DESOPADEC, State Government, others for sand filling
FLOOD has submerged Benikrukru community in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, rendering more than 300 residents homeless and destroying property worth millions of naira
Commenting on the situation, Mr. Solomon Eris, former Public Relations Officer of Benikrukru community in Gbaramatu kingdom appealed to multinational oil company, Chevron Nigeria Limited, the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, Delta State Government and other relevant authorities to immediately come to its rescue.
The former public relations officer of the community particularly, emphasized that the community has played host to Chevron for many years while claiming that the community remains neglected by the multinational oil giant.
According to him, “Flood have overtaken our community, Benikrukru is a major oil producing community in Delta State, despite playing host to Chevron, we remain brutally neglected by both the NDDC, DESOPADEC, Delta State Government and other developmental agencies, we are therefore, calling on the aforementioned agencies to come to our rescue by sand filling the community and the building of foreshore walls.”
He also implored government to construct a suitable shore protection and distributing relief materials to victims to alleviate their present sufferings.
Mr. Solomon added “The Socio-economic activities in the community have also grounded to a halt. School buildings submerged, church buildings, infact, apart from the socio-economic implication of the flood in the community, high blood pressures and other health-related cases are also recorded.
“Consequently, there is widespread outcry by owners of houses, stores and school on effects of flood on their properties, as well as displaced persons”, he said.
Besides, almost all Ijaw communities in the riverine areas in the Niger Delta do experience widespread inundation, but the Benikrukru case is peculiar because of the non availability of shore protection coupled with the geographical location of the town.
