ENVIRONMENT Dangote writes states, demands N1.2bn flood money

Aliko Dangote-led Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation has written to state governors urging them to redeem their pledges made after the 2012 flood disaster in the country.

Daily Trust recalls that each state of the federation made a pledge of N50 million at the Presidential Dinner organised by President Goodluck Jonathan in honour of victims of the devastating flood which rendered over 18 million Nigerians homeless.

Two years after, however, the committee established to collect the funds has still yet to get positive response from the states, Daily Trust has learned.

Ironically, the states, including Nasarawa, where a total of 95,538 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were recorded, in not less than nine local government areas hit by the flood disaster, are, on the other hand, expecting intervention from the committee, Daily Trust learned further.

Pertinent to add that the states have since received from the federal government an initial intervention funds which most of them have not been able to give an account of how the monies were expended, while victims of the flood disaster are still suffering from their losses.

Daily Trust investigation showed that since the pledges made in 2012, the committee chairman, Aliko Dangote, personally, wrote to the states four times, reminding them of their pledges and the need to fulfill them.

In the last letter, the committee chairman informed state governors that only two states, namely, Ebonyi and Abia, have fulfilled their pledges.

Daily Trust made inquiries at the Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency (NASEMA) where the Executive Director, Dr. Abdullahi Idris, confirmed that the state has received four letters from Dangote on the need for it to fulfill the 2012 pledge.

He confirmed that Nasarawa has not redeemed its pledge made to the the Dangote-led presidential committee, but Dr. Idris added: “The governor of Nasarawa State is responding seriously and positively on the letter from Aliko Dangote.

“We were informed in the last letter that only two states so far have paid. We hope to be the third state to fulfill our pledge because the governor is taking this matter seriously.”