Photo: Pierre Holtz/IRIN

Inhabitants face worst floods.

Lafia — Vice President Nemadi Sambo, was at the weekend, led to communities displaced by the recent floods along Benue River, in Nasarawa State, by Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura, who informed displaced persons that the state government received the sum of N400 million from the federal government to relieve them from hardship.

Dr. Abdullahi Idris, Executive Secretary, Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency (NASEMA), told Daily Trust, today that Sambo who visited alongside two ministers - Godsday Orubebe of Niger Delta ministry, and Stella Ochepa of Environment ministry - touched down at Loko from two Nigerian Air Force helicopters.

"They had first flew over other communities affected by the floods to see the extent of the damage, before they touched down at Loko", Dr. Idris said.

He said the team was at the Loko camp as part of the presidential visits to flood affected states. "He went round and greeted the victims who gathered there at the camp in their thousands. They displaced persons were happy", Dr. Idris said.

He said the vice president informed the displaced persons that the federal government has several relief packages for them, including funds to reach them soon from the federal ministry of agriculture, as to aide them to return to their farming.

He said governor Al-Makura on his part, informed displaced persons of the relief package of N400 million in the custody of the state, from the federal government. "he informed them the state government's ongoing process to distribute the funds, including the setting up of a committee to distribute the funds", Dr. Idris said, adding that the state government's intervention programme to relief displaced persons has gulped over N50 million spent on relief materials and cash donations.

Over 2,000 hectares of farmland were lost to the recent flooding which devastated not less than 200 communities across Nasarawa State, just as 28 persons including women and their children died in the disaster which lasted months.

In all, 95,538 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were recorded to have been affected, and are currently camping in four camps of Guto in Toto, Tunga in Awe, Umaisha in Toto, and Rukubi in Doma.