Following the flooding that has ravaged many parts of the country with the attendant loss of lives, President Buhari has given the Minister of Water Resources 90 days to produce a plan on Flood prevention.
In a statement released by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, he made it known that the president has given the Minister of Water Resources 90 days to produce a plan on flood prevention.
Details of the post can be found below:
“President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Minister of Water Resources to lead and coordinate with the Ministries of Environment and Transportation as well as State Governments to develop a Comprehensive Plan of Action for Preventing Flood Disaster in Nigeria.
“The President’s directive, which was conveyed to the Minister in a letter signed by his Chief of Staff, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, said the Plan should be presented to him in 90 days.
“President Buhari is regularly receiving updates on the flooding situation in the country and restates his commitment towards addressing the challenges caused by the disaster in the country.”
Responding to this information, many Nigerians felt it was coming a little too late. While some insisted that it was still better late than never, many thought otherwise.
A user tweeted “Why now? Since he became president in 2015, flood has been devastating the country and he never did anything to ravage the situation and now that his tenure is getting to an end, him was act film for us. Shame”
Another said “After losing over 600 lives with over a million citizens displaced, the govt has given ministers 90 days to produce a PLAN even when data is saying states like Anambra,Delta,C/R, Bayelsa – Rivers should be wary of the scourge until the end of November???”
From the reactions trailing this announcement, it’s clear that a majority of Nigerians see this as mere political speak. The 90-day ultimatum will end in January, the raining season would be largely over and the administration will be winding down. It therefore appears that the Buhari administration does not wish to do anything about this disaster,
This is a task that is clearly being left for the next administration.