The Senator representing Anambra Central Senatorial District, Senator Victor Umeh, has called on the Federal Government to immediately declare Idemili North and Idemili South Local Government Areas an erosion disaster zone and urgently intervene to address the worsening erosion menace ravaging the area.
Senator Umeh made the call during an on-the-spot assessment of a devastating gully erosion site at Ugama, Obosi, in Idemili North Local Government Area.
The Senator said the scale and spread of erosion across the entire Idemili axis had reached a critical stage requiring urgent federal intervention.
He warned that continued rainfall could further worsen the situation, threatening more homes, roads, schools and other public infrastructure.
“The erosion menace in the whole of Idemili North and South is something the Federal Government of Nigeria should take seriously. The zone is one of the most erosion-prone areas, including Obosi, Nkpor, Ogidi, Umuoji and other communities in Idemili,” he stated.
Senator Umeh disclosed that he was alerted to the worsening situation by Engr. Eric Anyamene and immediately proceeded to the site to assess the extent of the damage.
According to him, previous government efforts to address erosion in Obosi had failed to produce a lasting solution because of the nature of the soil and the absence of a comprehensive drainage and flood-management plan for the affected communities.
“Government has tried in the past to do something concerning erosion in Obosi, but it is becoming increasingly difficult.
The soil is very loose. As long as it rains, it will continue to cause problems unless there is a conscious effort by the government to redesign the entire layout and properly channel floodwater directly into the river,” Senator Umeh said.
He stressed that the magnitude of the erosion disaster was beyond the capacity of the Anambra State Government, the affected communities and individual property owners to manage.
“It is something far beyond the State Government. So, it is something the Federal Government should do, using relevant international agencies to tackle it,” he said.
Senator Umeh further disclosed that he would commence moves to secure federal intervention without waiting for the Senate to resume from its recess in September.
“When I go back to the Senate—and I will not wait until we resume,i will write a letter immediately to the Honourable Minister of Environment and to Mr. President himself. I will also prepare a formal motion that I will take to the floor of the Senate when we resume in September,” he stated.
Also speaking, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for Idemili North and South Federal Constituency, Engr. Eric Anyamene, whose residence is under threat from the advancing gully, said the erosion became noticeable only a few days earlier but had rapidly escalated beyond the capacity of the community to contain.
“Initially, we thought that the erosion could be managed by the community, but it has reached a stage where government should assist,” he said.
Anyamene revealed that residents had contributed millions of naira in previous efforts to repair and control the erosion, but the interventions had failed to provide an adequate or lasting solution.
He commended the Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, for directing the Commissioner for Works and the relevant local government chairmen to visit the site.
He also praised Senator Umeh for responding promptly to the community’s distress call and personally inspecting the affected area.
The engineer handling the ongoing palliative intervention, Engr. Mezie Andrew, said the temporary remedial work was expected to take between two and three weeks to complete.
He, however, acknowledged that the scale of the erosion was beyond what could be effectively handled by an individual or through a temporary intervention.
“The magnitude of the erosion menace is beyond what one person could do,” he said.
The representative of the Traditional Ruler of Obosi, Igwe Chidubem Iweka III, Dr. Okey Mgbemena, and the representative of the Principal of Union Secondary School, Obosi, Mrs. Okoro Chidima, also appealed for urgent government intervention.
They noted that the advancing erosion had already affected access to the school and posed a serious threat to residents, homes and other properties in the area.
Affected residents, including Chiemerie Mbakaogu, Sunday Egbuna and Gabriel Orakpo, also appealed to the state and federal governments to urgently intervene before the erosion causes further destruction, displacement and disruption to movement within the community.
Senator Umeh, while commending Engr. Anyamene for commencing palliative work to temporarily contain the situation, reiterated that such measures could provide only short-term relief and could not substitute for a comprehensive, government-led solution.
He called for a coordinated intervention involving the federal and state governments, relevant technical agencies and development partners, stressing that the peculiar nature of the terrain required more than isolated remedial measures.
The senator’s call has therefore renewed attention to the urgent need for a comprehensive response to the erosion crisis in Idemili, including integrated drainage planning, proper floodwater channelisation, erosion-control engineering and the deployment of technical expertise capable of addressing the area’s persistent environmental challenges.
For residents of Idemili, the immediate concern is whether the Federal Government will respond swiftly enough to prevent the expanding gullies from swallowing more homes, public infrastructure, access roads and other community assets.
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