With the rainy season underway, communities in the South East that are prone to erosion are sounding the alarm and pleading for government intervention, fearing for their safety as flash floods, landslides, and gully erosion threaten to disrupt their lives and livelihoods
The South East region of Nigeria is notoriously plagued by erosion issues, with Anambra State bearing the brunt of the problem. In fact, whenever erosion is mentioned in Nigeria, Anambra State instantly comes to mind. The state’s unique geography makes it extremely vulnerable, with hardly any community left unscathed. Upland areas are ravaged by gully erosion, while riverine communities struggle with coastal erosion.
Erosion gullies are wreaking havoc on homes, infrastructure, and farmlands, leaving residents in a state of distress. The devastating impact is evident in the recent collapse of a section of the Onitsha-Owerri expressway at Oba, Idemili South Local Government Area, which has turned daily commutes into a nightmare ¹. To make matters worse, another landslide has occurred in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Council Area, due to gully erosion.
Anambra state has over 1000 active erosion sites, some of which have forced the residents of such areas to flee to other areas to take refuge, abandoning their homes.
In the erosion-devastated Agulu-Nanka-Oko communities, their leaders have formed guards to prevent sand miners from further depleting the soil, and heavy fines are imposed on those who default.
Worried by the increasing human activities that trigger gully erosion in the state, Governor Chukwuma Soludo recently banned sand mining in the state as it was discovered it is the major cause of gully erosion.
In the governor’s words, the former Vice President of Nigeria, Dr. Alex Ekwueme who hailed from Oko, had an unfinished project that was very dear to his heart, which was how to combat the gully erosion menace in the town and other neighbouring communities.
“The erosion in Oko is such that even if we channel all the resources of the state to fight it, the problem won’t be solved, which is why we need to change our attitudes.
“To show how serious we are, our government has decided to form a task force comprising representatives of the five communities of Oko, Awgbu, Ekwulobia, Nanka, and Amaokpala.
“I will sign an executive order that will empower the task force to impound vehicles used for digging sand and they will be detained for one year because if we don’t act fast, we will risk losing these communities to erosion in the next 50-60 years”, the governor warned.
Also in the Ezimezi area of Amawbia in the state, some roads have been abandoned because gully erosion has cut them off.
A resident of the area, Mr. Chinedum Okere said they have been going through harrowing difficulties.
“We now park our cars in compounds outside our area because we can no longer drive to our street”, he said.
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