About 2, 000 hectares of farmland have been destroyed by water across the three districts of Patigi Local government area of Kwara.
Special Adviser to Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed on Emergency and Relief Services, Alhaji Duro Mohammed, disclosed this while inspecting the havoc caused by flood in Patigi on Saturday.
He said rice farms in Lade, Patigi and Sepondi districts cultivated near the River Niger were mostly affected as well as a clinic, a cemetery and a primary school at Gbaradogi.
Mohammed, who led the state government’s delegation to the flooded farms described the damage as devastating.
The Governor’s Aide called on the Federal Government to come to the aid of the state in ameliorating the suffering of the affected farmers.
He said the magnitude of the disaster was too much for the state to bear alone.
He also called for urgent dredging of River Niger and construction of a drain that would permanently secure the rice farms against flooding in the future.
The Etsu Patigi, Alhaji Ibrahim Chatta Umar expressed concern over the perennial flooding in the area.
The monarch also suggested that dredging of River Niger and construction of drain would permanently safe the community from the disaster.
Umar said the flood had increased poverty level in the community, noting that compensations were not enough in ameliorating the suffering of the people who are predominantly farmers.
The Etsu commended the state government for its support and called on the Federal government to find permanent solution to the problem.
Some of the affected farmers, who spoke with newsmen, lamented that the rice was just due for harvesting before flooding.
One of the victims and Head of Gbaradogi community, Alhaji Muhammadu Saadu said both rice and fish farms were washed away.
He called on the Federal and state governments to immediately come to their aid to ameliorate their suffering.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the state government delegation also inspected the Internally Displaced Persons’ camp under construction by the Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation.
