By Prince Stanley Okoroji
The Ancient City of Oguta (Oguta
Urban and Oru-Oguta II) has in 65 years time experienced serious flood
disasters. Within two generations (1940-1980 and 1980-2020, the flood was
terrible and overrun its bank enormously, causing lesser damages as
urbanization and its characteristic conurbation was not much. People had not
started erecting houses then near the coastal regions. Albeit, the farms in
Ubi, Ugada, Anieze, etc, were overrun by flood with the Colonial-cum-Independent
Governments remarking nothing about the plight of citizens in the areas and other
places. In the second generation (1980-2020), the flood was terrible in (1989, 1993,
2000 and) 2012 it became disastrous. Save for this 2012 has the Government of
Nigeria looked into the plight of citizens in the coastal regions of the
country in Imo, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Cross
River, Bayelsa, Delta and Kogi States,
etc.
This year’s disaster is most
remarkable in triadic manners: The overrun waters sent good number of families
packing (thus homeless for months), it rendered many farmers and mechanized
agriculturalists jobless (by destroying their farm crops, fisheries and
snail-farms, etc), and bred the highest varieties and population of mosquitoes
(the likes only seen in the Biblical Book of Exodus as plagues on Pharaoh and
the Egyptian). Unlike previous generations and flood disaster episodes, the
Federal and State Government, as well as several philanthropic Nigerians,
eminent significant others, political parties and politicians, churches as well
as foreign and national agencies, have
sleeplessly bore the flood victims as the apple of their eyes. Relief materials
and rehabilitation items of sundry types and qualities have been sent on weekly
and regular intervals to people. These have not only brought succour to the
people but restored firm confidence in both the Imo State Government and the Federal
Government, in both the leading political parties (PDP, APGA, ACN) and the
politicians in the country, in both the numerous churches and well-meaning
Nigerians.
But every disaster incident has
after effects, which if not well treated create untold hardships in the lives
of the people. Some post-flood disaster effects are ripple in nature, and these
ripple effects are what the Oguta
Ancient City
now is into. First, is how to get fast-yielding crop seedlings that would be
planted and harvested in the next eight months before the flood season comes
up. This more than relief materials will allow the farmers to plant and harvest
crops at the unset of the first rain anticipated in 90days time. As their
brothers’ keepers, the good people of Oguta (Oru, Awa, Akabo, Izombe,
Ejemekwuru and Agwa) have helped their brothers in Ubi, Ugada, Anieze, etc,
with same species of crops that last 10-18months before maturity (especially
cassava stems) to restart farming. This entails that till the harvest time of
next year, the flood-caused hunger will elapse till June 2014. More so, the
soil itself has been totally eroded by the flood, and germination or
stocking-out rate and strength are febrile. With their susceptible germination
and the unset of the Harmattan, with natural fertility of the soil gone, and with
the now weakened soil (as the flood came with presumably strange chemical
elements), every crop will dry up, thus rendering their three months farm
rehabilitation efforts useless. The soil is left with no natural manure, and is
with weakened texture (as the flood came with supposedly salt-contents from the
Ocean, which is naturally unsuitable for fresh water inhabitants and soil composition).
Secondly, according to local
analysts and records on past floods (annually and episodic), the flood that
came overrun the coast with about 9-11metres height and 82-221metres length at
each side of the bank, depending on the declination degree of plain lands and
the inclination degree of uplands near the coast. The result of this volume and
expanse covered is no less disastrous than the interior damages the flood
itself caused to the Uhammiri (Ogbuide Oguta) ecosystem. Tales were told on the
causes of the flood as joint causal-effects of the melting Iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean and the overrun dam(s) in Cameroon or elsewhere
that were opened. Some rural folks at Nnebukwu-Egwe-Oguta believed that the
Uhammiri/Ogbuide let the waters overrun itself so that the Jinarco Construction
Company in charge of the NDDC
Bridge across
Nnebukwu-Egwe-Oguta, will know the fullest height of the waters during flood.
It is doubtful what uncertain interpretation that could be given to its over
recession, the like that has never been
witnessed before at least in two generations now.
However, the flood unbelievably receded
with same speed it came and back to its ghost source. But its effects on the
Uhammiri/Ogbuide are now an ecological challenge posing manly before Barr Emma
Ekweremaba’s led Commission for Environment. Obvious ecological problems are
now involved in the Oguta
Ancient City’s
Uhammiri/Ogbuide. One, the flood that came, certainly entered with either salt
or some strange water soluble chemical components that are foreign to the
aquatic hydrogenous composition of the Uhammiri fresh water. This unidentified strange
hydrogenous element made all fishes killed during and after the flood strangely
tasteless and quick to decay within 3-6hours intervals. Fish bodily resistance
and struggling strength to escape fishing-equipments are abysmally low as a
result of this, they die in any little encumbering situation.
Two, because of this unidentified
element, all the waters, fruits, grasses and plants that harbour sundry fishes,
ants and aquatic food-chain have all died. What remains now are mere milky-mud.
Most trees have died, making the lower fishes and aquatic creatures homeless.
Closer observation in the Lake, will notify
the incessant bickering of fishes in the water. Lower water creatures are in
extinction while only the higher ones are surviving, constantly feeding on them
as they are homeless.
Three, at present (by 25/12/2012), the water has
receded by 0.7metres beyond its last stage of recession that normally takes place
in the month of March. At present too, the water continuously recedes by
0.007metres every 24 hours, meaning that in the next 90days or at 25th
of March 2012, the waters might have receded again by 0.6metres; totalling
about 1.3 metres recession (meaning about 0.43metres-0.66metres volume) beyond
its last recession terminal volume/height.
The people’s fears are that: As the
upper source of the Oguta
Lake
(Njaba-Awo-Awa-Mgbele-Nkwesi-Nnebukwu-Orsu-Obodo) is drying up. They may not
have again, source of drinking and washing waters. Fishers are lamenting on the
fast disappearance of the water to unknown destination. Cassava fufu producers
are aggrieved while fishes struggle to adjust to new closer environments, thus
improvising for their imminent homelessness and extinction.
Good a thing, Barr Emma Ekweremba
was present at the Nigerian Medical Association (NDA) Hall on Friday November 30th, 2012
when the Flood Disaster and Relief Committee invited the people of
Ohaji/Egbema, Oguta Local Government Areas to discuss the way forward after the
flood. In the Oguta axis, the prestigious Oguta Lake
is drying up and every aquatic covering for inhabitation wiped off. What could
the Commission for Environment do? This really calls for urgent attention of
the Imo State Government. Everybody in State knows how much it cost the State
to dredge the Otamiri in Owerri. But the Oguta case is a different one. It is
an ecological problem that affects both the economic and social welfare of the
people of the State, denying them of their source of food provisions, of their
primordial pride and tourism advancement, as well as source of
religious-cum-business strength, virtue of religion and onus to traditional
deities for some, etc. It will increase the degree of joblessness and hardship
in the State.
Let the State officials in charge
of ecological problems stand and provide preventive measures to the impeding
crisis before things get out of hand. First, all the Traditional Rulers (or
Regents or their Delegates) and selected Stakeholders should gather under the
chairmanship of Barr Emma Ekweremba and discuss possible ways of solving these
ecological problems. Both the Commissioners of Police and of Environment should
as well issue strict bans on the usages of dynamites, gamelan and other
massive, non-selective and perilous fishing arsenals that some miscreants use
in the area for fishing. These dangerous fishing methods kill both fish-eggs
and fishes alike, while the miscreants take only the big and sizeable ones they
want and allow the rest to corrode in the water. This should not only be the
duty of the Marine Police in Oguta but collaborative efforts of the composite
communities who know and live with these miscreants, and patronise them. The
miscreants if not apprehended in the water, must be followed up at home. If not
with the fish’s homelessness and the activities of the miscreants, before April
2013, both the upper and lower sides of the Oguta Lake
will not only dry up but the little remnant water-strands will have no aquatic
creatures inside.
More so, the State Government in
collaboration with whichever establishment that could verify the cause of the
waters’ disappearance and possible solutions, should make haste and save the
Njaba/Ogbuide-Oguta Lake
from drying up like the eight lakes and popular streams in Kenya that
dried up between 1974-2010. The flood came with no natural regulations and recedes
same, it is possible that since it has deregulated itself (like the Down-stream
sector), it may re-occur next year and at its recession may recede farer again,
thus drying up entirely the waters before 3-4years time. The
Ministry/Commission for Environment should stand and hasten up to checkmate these
ecological disasters.
Prince Stanley U Okoroji (writes
from)
The Palace of His Highness Eze
Prof Celestine E Udom
Ezeigwe of Nnebukwu Autonomous
Community.
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