Flood: Labour Seeks Adequate Resettlement, Palliative For Victims

The organised labour groups are advocating adequate resettlement and palliative for victims of flood across the country.

Similarly, the organised labour in financial sector, under the aegis of Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance  and Financial Institutions Employees (ASSBIFI) and the National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institution Employees (NUBIFIE) have also expressed fear over further looming collapse of food in the country.

Although President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured of assistance, organised labour in the banking industry have appealed to other state governments to take more proactive steps to tackle the flooding in the country.

Their concern is based on the report by the constituted authority, National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA) which said that over 229 killed, 386,239 displaced, 94,492 houses affected by flood in the last nine months across 29 states.

The data released by NEMA recently further warned that more floods will still take place this year,  hence, ASSBIFI and NUBIFIE called on well-meaning Nigerians to join hands with both federal and state governments to assist flood victims.

Moreover in separate chats with LEADERSHIP WEEKEND, a top member of ASSBIFI who did not want his name in print as well as the deputy general secretary, National Union of Banks Insurance and financial Institutions Employees, Comrade

Aboderin Phillip Olusola, stated that, with an already battered economy coupled with food scarcity, the number of farms affected at time of harvest by floods would increase hunger in the land.

According to the unions, the floods have  increased the number of unbanked communities and increased food insecurity as most food basket states are submerged by the flood, facing activities from bandits.

It would be recalled that many lives have been lost, over 200,000 residents have been displaced and over 40 per cent of farmlands at the verge of harvest have been washed away by the flood.

The data from the agency’s National Emergency Operations Centre, also revealed that the South West had the lowest number of affected and displaced persons, while states with the most affected farmlands included Bauchi, Taraba, Niger,  Jigawa, Sokoto, Kebbi, Adamawa, Zamfara, Kano, Yobe, Enugu and Borno states.