Almost two weeks after relief materials were delivered to the Oyigbo Local Government Secretariat for flood victims, some affected residents say they are yet to receive any assistance.
The residents told our correspondent that council officials recorded their names when the Rivers State Flood Prevention and Management Committee delivered the materials on September 15, but said no items had been distributed to them since then.
Some of the victims said they were tired of receiving palliatives, arguing that relief materials only provided temporary assistance while the underlying causes of flooding remained unresolved.
They also expressed concern that the relief items could be diverted, urging the government to ensure that the materials reached the intended beneficiaries.
The Oyigbo Local Government Council, however, gave a different account.
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The Chairman of Oyigbo Local Government Area, Okechukwu Akara, said the relief materials supplied by the Rivers State Government remained in the council’s custody.
According to him, only materials supplied directly by the National Emergency Management Agency had so far been distributed to flood victims in Graceland Community.
NEMA also confirmed that some relief materials had been distributed directly to victims in Graceland.
The State Coordinator of NEMA, Dr Chidi Ogunde, said the remaining materials were handed over to the Oyigbo Local Government Council, which had yet to notify the agency of when the items would be distributed.
The Oyigbo Flood Committee also provided an explanation for the delay.
Its Chairman, Temple Nwankwo, said the decision to hold back the materials was deliberate, explaining that the committee was waiting to receive additional items so there would be enough relief materials to distribute among the affected residents.
Nwankwo said the materials were expected to be distributed on Wednesday.
However, another stakeholder in Oyigbo, who requested anonymity, disputed the explanation.
The stakeholder alleged that the food items, except mattresses, had already been distributed at the ward level to political loyalists.
The allegation could not be independently verified.
The Rivers State Flood Prevention and Management Committee, led by Deputy Governor Prof. Ngozi Odu, delivered the relief materials to Oyigbo on September 15.
The items included rice, garri, beans, noodles, mattresses, toiletries, and other materials intended to support residents affected by flooding.
