President Jonathan- Picture by YAShuaib

By Yushau A. Shuaib
While addressing the nation in a broadcast over the unprecedented flood disaster that ravaged many communities in Nigeria, President Goodluck Jonathan’s eyes and head movement, betrayed the fact that he was reading from a prepared text, though there was no sign of a speech on his table.

His stiffness said it all. He neither gesticulated nor moved parts of his body as he is wont to in normal discussions and addresses to the rhythm of the broadcast. Aside from the motion of his mouth as he uttered the words and the intermittent sounds of billions of Naira donations to some federal institutions and states, the broadcast was a mere dictation session.

However, an opportunity to study the natural moods of the President to the devastation away from the dictates of protocol, came when he undertook a tour of some selected states affected by the flood. He was accompanied on the tour by Minister of Environment, Hajia Hadiza Mailafiya and Director General of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) Muhammad Sani-Sidi among others.

The tour was indeed an opportunity to see him move in flesh and react naturally in his interaction with victims. He responded directly to their plights and walked under the sun to inspect the internally displaced persons’ (IDPs) camps. Uncharacteristically, there were few body guards and security men accompanying him. In fact, any displaced person could easily walk to him and hold his hands as if it is not the same almighty Nigerian leader. The atmosphere was quite convivial.

In all the states he had visited, President Jonathan encouraged leaders of the IDPs to voice out their minds openly on their plights. In response, victims narrated how they lost their homes, livestock and farmlands. They gave gory tales of deaths, missing persons and submerged markets, schools, police stations and places of worship.

In Kogi for instance, President Jonathan was in a melancholic mood. His mien fell further when mothers brought newly born babies to him. He also learnt that some men committed suicide following losses of loved ones and lifelong investments. He admonished victims to desist from taking extreme decisions. He said: “please, don’t commit suicide. You have a government that will assist you. Even, if you borrow money from banks, don’t worry, when the flood is over, we will know how to deal with it. Be rest assured that the government will take care of the situation.’’

In Adamawa State, he disclosed that the government plans to construct more buffer dams on rivers Niger and Benue to check the menace of flooding in communities along the river banks and from neighbouring countries. He disclosed that the flood this year was a natural phenomenon due to climate change occasioned by global warming and pointed out that government would take steps to prevent a future re-occurrence.

In Delta State, President Jonathan inspected a camp, equipped with a skills acquisition centre where displaced persons were learning trades, artwork, music, drama, hair dressing and computer skills. While he believed that such facilities could make them useful after leaving the camp he disclosed that the government had initiated measures for proper resettlement of flood victims.

While addressing displaced persons in Anambra, he advised them not to worry as the Federal Government was collaborating with sympathetic groups and individuals to make life better for them after leaving the camp.

In Rivers and Bayelsa states, President Jonathan confessed that the flood disaster, which destroyed property worth billions of naira, was beyond the capacity of the Federal Government to solely remedy. He therefore solicited the supports of development partners and international bodies.

In Taraba State, while assuring that the European Union and the World Bank have indicated their readiness to assist Nigeria, the President stated that the water level was gradually reducing. He gave the assurance that government would provide farmers with maturing seedlings that would guarantee early harvest of farm produce as an antidote to the much anticipated food crisis.

President Goodluck Jonathan cuddles a baba at IDP Camp for flood victims- Pic by YAShuaib

In all the states he had visited, President Jonathan allowed governors to present their opening address and thereafter, stood and listened attentively to the victims. His responses were calm, re-assuring and warm as he sometimes cuddled new born babies while addressing the mostly women and children victims.

The President had also explained that the inauguration of a high power committee on Flood Relief Fund co-headed by billionaire businessman, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and human rights activist, Chief Olisa Agbakoba was to raise funds, which will mitigate the effects of the devastation. He explained that membership of the committee included “individuals who could not steal people’s money because they include philanthropists and advocates of transparency and accountability who will not also condone injustice.”

While most of the utterances and actions of President Jonathan over the flooding are commendable, the establishment of the Dangote’s committee should have been in consonance with the enabling laws. As former Chairman of the governing council of NEMA, the President would recall that there is a provision envisaging such development in the law that established NEMA: Act 12 as amended by Act 50 of 1999. Among other things the law empowers NEMA to “co-ordinate the activities of all voluntary organisations engaged in emergency relief operations in any part of the Federation; Receive financial and technical aid from international organisations and non-governmental agencies, for the purpose of disaster management in Nigeria; Collect emergency relief supply from local and foreign source and from International and non-Governmental Agencies; and distribute emergency relief materials to victims of natural or other disasters and assist in the rehabilitation of the victims, where necessary…”

In view of the above therefore, the government could delegate and designate the Dangote Committee, as National Fund Raisers, to assist in the mobilisation of funds for the relevant established agencies including State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMA) to manage the processes judiciously. The secretariat could be in NEMA. If government is still more concerned about the selected individuals, the President could nominate them into membership of NEMA governing council.

It does not augur well to relegate established statutory institutions to the background due to vague misgivings. No-one is infallible, our leaders need to be supported and guided appropriately to take rational decisions to better the society without entertaining any fear whatsoever.

This article by Yushau A. Shuaib has been published in the print edition of the New Nigerian October 22, Punch October 22, National Mirror October 22, People’s Daily October 23, Leadership October 24, Blueprint October 24, Vanguard October 24, Daily Trust October 25, and Daily Sun October29, 2012

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NEMA Helicopter

On September 23, 2010, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) hosted a preliminary meeting for a simulation exercise on presumed terrorist’s bomb explosions iat a very strategic place in Abuja.

The agency which has in its service officers from Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA), the Nigerian Army, Navy and Airforce, had a full attendance at the meeting. Participants were drawn from military and paramilitary including NIA, the Police, Federal Fire Service (FFS), Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), State Security Service (SSS), Nigeria security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Hospitals, Red Cross and other stakeholders whose roles are crucial to disaster management in the country.

A simulation exercise is an act of imitating the behaviour of some situations for the purpose of training as well as for studying the level of preparedness in a case of the reality of the assumed incidence.

Air Commodore Alexander Bankole who is the Director Search and Rescue of NEMA triggered an alert for the exercise to test how officers in the field would respond to an emergency situation of bomb explosions in the capital city. The response was fairly successful in testing the level of preparedness of stakeholders.

Such simulations exercises have been successfully carried out on search and rescue effort to tackle emergencies during flooding, road accidents, plane crash, terrorist attacks among others. Ironically there was a case of a simulation becoming a reality like the aborted exercise in Port-Harcourt Airport where an aircraft for the exercise on landing, suddenly veered off into the bush. The officers on ground who were prepared for the exercise eventually saved the passengers who had been billed to dramatize for the simulation.

The recent Abuja bomb attacks on the day of the country’s 50th Independence Anniversary as claimed by Movement for Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND), though caught the country by surprise, the response agencies timely and responsibly attended to the disaster saving more lives as well as moving survivals and corpses to hospitals. This incident came at the time the country is witnessing the climate change-induced tragedies.

A disaster is a sudden occurrence of event leading to loss of lives and properties. It disrupts normal societal activities with negative effects on human, materials and the environment where it occurs. A natural disaster occurs as a result of natural phenomenon and circumstances which is referred to as an ‘Act of God’ while a man-induced disaster results from human activities due to ignorance, deliberate instigation and nonchalant attitudes of those that could have addressed the occurrence of the incidents.

There have been massive floods in some Northern states where, for instance, speed boats were used to evacuate students of Usman Danfodio University to safety; when communities have been cut off due to collapsed bridges in Kebbi State with thousands of hectares of farmlands washed away or submerged in Jigawa State.

In the southern parts of the country, mud sliding and erosions have continued to pervert some communities in southern parts of the country: the menace of storms and degradation of lands in coastal communities have resulted to displaced people whose means of livelihood are destroyed.

Interestingly as properties worth billions of Naira are lost to natural disasters, fewer deaths are recorded. The government through NEMA has been very supportive with relief materials and rehabilitations of victims.

Man-made disasters are aggravated by poor governance, weak structures and non-enforced policies. The major emergency situations in Nigeria are man-made tragedies. In rural areas there are reported outbreaks of epidemics like contagious diseases affecting large number of people in specific geographical locations. For instance cholera, meningitis and Lassa fever have caused loss of lives in various communities in the country when preventive antidotes could have saved the situations.

Urban cities have continued to witness collapse of buildings due to weak structures, likewise, deplorable road conditions have resulted to loss of lives in our highways. Those calamities can be blamed on the shoulders of regulatory authorities who have the responsibilities to monitor and check the defects.

Similarly some groups and individuals have deliberately engaged in criminalities for economic gains and rebellions against the state to make some statements. The country has lost human and materials due to ethnic and religious crises; kidnapping of citizens and foreigners; destructions of pipelines to illegal siphon crude oil by bunkerers and local gangs which cause oil spillages and huge fire outbreaks; and the recent phenomena of planting of bombs in strategic places by undesirable elements.

Therefore whose responsibility is to check the menace of man-made disaster? The relevant stakeholders have roles to play through collaborative efforts and commitment towards timely interventions and response.

The concept of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) is advocated for better awareness in managing disasters. Its measures are designed to protect livelihoods and the assets of communities and individuals from the impact of emergency situations through mitigation, preparedness and adequate awareness. DRR which is being championed in Nigeria by NEMA through capacity building and the creation of volunteer groups is a means of bridging the gap between development and humanitarian programmes that could strengthen livelihood, provide security and protect properties.

Awareness campaigns on preventive measures against hazards that could lead to disasters can go a long way with the support of media for massive sensitizations in their editorial. Educational institutions could also mainstream DRR into school curricula while response agencies and volunteer groups build their capacity through further training and workshop.

While the response agencies should be encouraged to intensify their collaborative efforts, there is the need for consistency across multiple stakeholders by providing a coherent, transparent and inclusive policy for disaster management. Nevertheless every citizen has a stake in ensuring that those calamities are prevented. At individual levels, we should report undesirable elements and strange activities that could cause hazards to appropriate authorities as well as taking proactive and practical steps to safeguard our society. We must build a culture of prevention by taking appropriate actions against potentials that easily trigger hazards in our society.

Nigeria is quite a blessed country that seems to be immune to major catastrophes like earthquakes, volcanoes, cyclones, cold and heat waves, landslides, mudslides as well as tsunami. Just imagine how other nations cope socially, economically and psychologically in the face of adverse effect of those monumental disasters.

This article by Yushau A. Shuaib originally appeared in October 2010 in some national media including Economic Confidential, the Punch, Leadership, Daily Trust, New Nigerian, Thisday, Daily Independent, Vanguard and Sunday Tribune.

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