The Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has ordered all civil servants in the state, except those on essential duties, to stay at home for seven days to lessen the effects of flooding in communities.
Diri gave the order during a statewide broadcast on Tuesday, disclosing that floods have overwhelmed several communities in the state and severely impacted lives and livelihood, including a part of the State Secretariat in Yenagoa.
He stated that although the flood is a natural disaster that has affected many other states of the Federation to various degrees, nearly a million people in over 300 communities in the state, have been internally displaced while some deaths have been recorded.
He stated that critical infrastructure like hospitals, roads, bridges and schools, including the state-owned Niger Delta University in Amassoma, the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital, Okolobiri, and the University of Africa, Toru-Orua, have been severely affected.
Speaking further, Diri said “As I make this address, Bayelsa State is completely severed from the rest of the country as portions of the strategic East-West Road, the sole access to and from the state, between Ughelli and Patani in Delta State, as well as Okogbe and Ahoada in Rivers State, have collapsed with a high volume of flood water occupying the stretch. Economic hardship has set in, as food, medical provisions and energy are now in short supply. The situation is desperate and getting worse.
“I wish to, on behalf of the people of Bayelsa, sincerely thank Mr. President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Muhammadu Buhari, for his kind directive to the different federal agencies to come to assist the state. I urge them to comply with this presidential directive expeditiously.
“Without exaggeration, the sheer scale of the devastation is not such that the state can handle it on its own. We urgently solicit the support of multinationals, international donor agencies, the Red Cross, diplomatic missions and people of goodwill to come to the aid of our state.
“I have directed all civil servants except those on essential duties to be given time off from work for the next one week. Let me make a special appeal to vendors, particularly of fuel, food, water and pharmaceuticals not to exploit the situation. We must be our brothers’ keepers.
“Government has also observed that at such moments of distress, some miscreants take advantage of the vulnerable population to commit crime. Let me make it clear that we will continue to have zero tolerance for crime and criminality.”
