...Community to be compensated

The Minister of Water Resources Mrs. Sarah Reng Ochekpe has assured the communities around the Kashimbila buffer Dam of adequate compensation for their land before the completion of the project.

The Kashimbila buffer Dam is under construction in Takum Local Government Area of Taraba State to mitigate the disaster that may occur to Nigerians as a result of the possible break of Lake Nyos in Cameroun.

The minister gave the assurance to the community members while inspecting the dam site at Kashimbila, close to the Cameroun border.

Mrs Ochekpe expressed Federal Government’s appreciation to the communities for their support, adding that the dam, when completed, would be of benefit to the communities.

“We are doing this for the progress of Nigeria but we are also doing it for the progress of the communities, because if nothing is done and the environmental hazards of Lake Nyos come, the first victims are the communities,” she explained.

She said that the communities would benefit from the economic activities of the dam before people in other parts of the country do so.

Ochekpe said: “In construction of project like this, there are compensations that would be paid to communities and these can be done when proper enumeration is done to know who is affected and what is involved and what is the value involved. So far, the ministry has been able to enumerate the total of 21 communities and over 260 million has been paid as compensation. For the remaining communities, process of enumeration will commence and they will be paid as soon as enumeration is completed”

The minister explained that the development of irrigation component of the project would take place after the water was impounded.

“Hydro power is in progress, the contractors are also in process of providing potable water to the community, already pipe laying work has been done to Takum local government where treatment plant would be built,” she added.

In his remarks, the Supervising Minister of Environment, Mr. Darius Ishaku, who is an indegene of the community, expressed his gratitude to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan for constructing the dam.