By Isah Aliyu Chiroma
The Katsina State Government has ordered the state’s Urban and Regional Planning Board (URPB) to demolish all buildings erected on waterways in the state.
Deputy Governor of the state, Hon. Faruq Jobe gave the directive shortly after inspecting some flooded areas within Katsina metropolis, saying the decision was to mitigate flooding in the state.
He directed the board to identify and pull down all structures erected on waterways channels to allow free flow of water on natural waterways and those constructed by the government.
Jobe averred that illegal structures and indiscriminate dumping of waste by residents, particularly in drainages, were the bane of the recent flood that ravaged Sabon-Ungwa, Tudun Katsira, Kofar Kaura, Kofar Marusa and Kofar Kwaya.
He cautioned residents to refrain from dumping waste indiscriminately, building on waterways and to promote good hygiene practices in order to arrest floods in the state.
According to Jobe the previous administration of Aminu Bello Masari expanded billions of naira on construction of drainages to tackle flooding but some “bad eggs” had truncated government’s efforts by building on waterways.
To mitigate the flood, Faruq said, Governor Dikko Radda has commenced the expansion and rehabilitation of drainages in the state.
He, however, said the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) has been directed to assess the immediate needs of the recent flood victims for onward provision of relief materials by the government.
Recently, a downpour, which overran the newly constructed Kofar Kaura and Kofar Kwaya underpasses, had led to the death of three persons while properties worth millions of naira were destroyed in the ancient city.
Worst hit areas include Kofar Kaura, Kofar Marusa, Tudun Katsira, Kofar Kwaya, Rahamawa and Sabon-Ungwa. The devastating flood restricted vehicular movement along Yahaya Madaki way, Mani House junction and many other major streets in the ancient city.
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