Erosion: Umuanunu Nsu, Imo community, on the verge of extinction
Life is now a nightmare for the people of Umuanunu Nsu, a farming community in Ehime Mbano, Imo State because of the devastating impact of persisting erosion.
The community, which is bordered by six other bigger ones, is on the edge of collapse due to the heavy flooding from the communities, all channeled to its small landmass, and making obvious its disadvantaged position.
Over the years neglect, the community resorted to selfhelp, paid voluntary workers to manage the high flooding in a way that houses are still standing, farmlands safe and roads still passable.
But the community regrets that since the former administration of Rochas Okorocha, the situation has become worse with deep gullies across the community that can swallow a three-storey building.
The worsening situation is making life more difficult for the people as most roads are now impassable.
Sadly, some of the community residents now make arrangements with the uphill villages where they park their cars as gullies have eaten up theirs.
Regretfully, Umuanunu people have continued in the suffering for more than 35 years, as successive governments kept promising without action.
One of such promises was the loud one from Governor Okorocha, which was never fulfilled till date.
“Okorocha would have allowed us to manage the erosion in our usual way rather than awarding the contract to a
contractor who came only to use bulldozers to destroy the road and creating more problems for us”, some aggrieved members of the community decried.
They further lamented that the contractor abandoned the road without any reason and cannot be identified or located till date.
Confirming the contract issue, a former House of Assembly member representing Ehime Mbano LGA under Rochas Okorocha’s administration, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that the contract was awarded and the contractor abandoned it.
For him, the flooding ravaging the area is so alarming that once there is a signal for rainfall, people will relocate to other places or enter their house with fear.
It is lamentable that the government has abandoned the road, which also link to Onicha Uboma, one of the agricultural hubs of the state, as well as, links the Enugu-port Harcourt Expressway.
With Hope Uzodinma at the
helm of affairs in the state, the community is hoping for respite soon as they claim to have voted for the governor.
The community has since sent a “save our souls” message to the governor in this regard, and is also calling for political inclusion as none of their sons and daughters has been appointed in any position in Imo State in the last 30 years.
They urge Governor Uzodinma to reverse the ugly trend, insisting that it would help to at least attract government attention.
While still at the peak of the rainy season, they think that government needs to speedily come to the help of the community.
Recently, a team of independent reporters visited the site and could not believe what they saw and were unanimously asking when government would be visiting the community.
From the analysis, the community has tried some palliatives in the past on environmental degradation in the area, but its effort alone cannot arrest the erosion.
The question on the lips of many concerned citizens is; when will the people feel the presence of government?
Over the years, Ehime Local Government has produced House of Representatives members and senators, who only come to seek people’s vote, but abandon them as soon as they are voted into power.
The community is appealing to Governor Uzodinma to quickly visit Umuanunu before erosion sweeps it into extinction.
On another note, most indigenes of Ehime Mbano local government regret that despite having three members at the various houses, there is nothing to show for their representation.
“It is disheartening that the politicians and representatives we have are invariably representing their families, erecting gigantic buildings in safer places, and rubbing their wealth on the faces of the poor,” an indigene of the erosion-ravaged community lamented.