Lagos — Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole, has prescribed flood canalisation across the state capital, Abeokuta, as the antidote to the recurring cases of flooding in the area.

Speaking in Abeokuta yesterday to commiserate with the people over the current flooding incident, Bankole blamed the incident on nature.

He also said nothing short of construction of a canalisation project cutting across the metropolis will provide a lasting solution to the destruction wrecked by the flood water on infrastructure and home, adding that a similar disaster occurred in 2007 along the same route resulting in multi-billion naira damage to infrastructure and property.

Among the site the speaker visited with the acting Director General of National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA Dr. Charles Agbo were Ijeun Titun, Amolaso, Isale Igbein, Omida Market area and Oke Sokori along a major water channel that usually runs over its bank once there is torrential rain destroying roads, bridges and peoples' home.

The Speaker, who lamented the reoccurrence of the flooding regretted the late passage of the 2010 budget of the federation as provision was made for a canalisation project in the budget for the metropolis, stressing that if the project have been completed, damages to infrastructure would have been minimised.

He later told journalists that he facilitated a rapid response to address immediate humanitarian aspects of the disaster through NEMA in form of provision of relief materials for those seriously affected by the disaster.

The NEMA DG had earlier told the Speaker that following his appeal for assistance to those affected by the flooding and their rapid assessment, the agency sent in relief materials to the Ogun State Emergency Management Agency that can provide succor for about 300 households comprising bags of rice, clothing materials, cartons of groundnut oils, blankets, towels, buckets among other domestic items for distribution, adding that state authorities are supposed to match these items from their own resources pending a comprehensive assessment and approval of more materials.

On the Speaker's entourage for the visit were the Deputy Speaker of Ogun state Hon Remmy Hazzan and Hon. Femi Adiro representing Abeokuta North in the State House of Assembly.