Survivors of the recent devastating flood in Mokwa, Niger State, have continued to recount their experiences. Most of them who spoke with Weekend Trust said many of their loved ones believed to have been swept away by the flood were yet to be found.

Mariya Usman said her family lost 18 people and only 9 bodies had been recovered and buried, while the remaining 9 were yet to be accounted for.

“We are still looking for nine members of our family, including three children between the ages of three and ten, as well as my sister,” she said.

Similarly, Maryam Isah recounted. “My family lost seven members and none of them has been recovered since the disaster happened. We have gone to the forests to see if we could see their bodies, but we are yet to find any of them.”

Also, Shamsiya Tasiu said her family lost four members, including her grandmother, her father’s younger brother and two of his children, adding, “The body of my father’s younger brother is yet to be accounted for.”

Umar Muhammad also said his wife lost nine members of her family, including her mother, but only four bodies had been recovered, while five are still missing.

Kasim Ibrahim, a local diver who risked his life to save a woman and her baby during the flood, described the incident as terrifying.

He said, “I was in my house when I heard people shouting that water was coming. As I rushed out, I saw a woman shouting. As a diver, I understood the water and immediately jumped into it. Thank God that the woman was saved. I sustained some minor injuries but I am okay,” he also recounted.

Also speaking to Weekend Trust, Aishatu Saidu, whose family home was completely submerged, called for an immediate action by the government at all levels, well-spirited individuals and corporate organisations.

She said, “Unfortunately, some individuals are taking advantage of the plight of the victims to enrich themselves. I advise the government to deal directly with the victims because some people are doing business with our plight. Things are being donated but many of us are not seeing anything. We will leave them with Allah if they cheat us. We are happy that we survived the disaster.”

Worried by their ages, some women whose children were killed said they may not survive the trauma of living without their loved ones, lamenting that some of them may no longer give birth.

Weeping uncontrollably, Fatima Abdullahi said age was no longer on her side as she recalled how her four children were swept away before her eyes.

Rukkaya Usman lamented that although they all escaped unhurt, they lost all their belongings, adding that they now squat with some Good Samaritans.

“They asked us to move to Kpege Primary School without mosquito nets. I am a nursing mother and I couldn’t pick even one of my baby’s cloths. We need cloths for our babies. We are 25 in number in our homes. Nobody died, but we lost everything. As we were running out of our house, we met water on the way. We need help from the government and philanthropists,” she pleaded.

Amina Isah also said they had been sleeping outside because of inadequate spaces in the displaced persons camp provided for them.

Furthermore, Amina Abbas, who could not control her tears, said the flood had taken them back. She said some of them lost their farm produce, and called on the government to offer them opportunities to learn skills.

“If we had money we would have rented a house because we have small children who may not cope in the IDP camp. We are afraid of staying in the IDP camp,” she said.

Fatima Abdullahi said she had moved to stay with her mum because the humanitarian assistance was inadequate. “I have received only two mudus of gari and two bags of 10kg rice,” she said.

Our correspondent learnt that apart from those who lost their lives in the tragedy, many survivors who narrowly escaped death are confronted with deep psychological scars as a result of their experiences and the loss of loved ones. To this end, humanitarian organisations, including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), have continued to advocate mental health support for victims.

In an interview with Weekend Trust, the chairman of Mokwa Local Government Area, Jibrin Abdullahi Mureg, acknowledged the gravity of mental health crisis in the area. He, however, said the humanitarian response had been commendable so far, but emphasized the urgent need for psychological assistance for survivors.

“People have actually turned out to help our people out of the present hard situation. But a lot of gaps need to be filled because, first, lives that have been lost cannot be replaced and they are suffering from trauma as a result of the disaster. Some are already in hospitals and we are footing the bills and taking care of some of them.

“Secondly, people have been displaced and they don’t have homes now. Internally displaced persons camps have been opened for them, but catering for their health, clothing and food are what people need to come in to assist,” he said.

As cash and material donations continue to pour in, victims and activists are demanding transparency and accountability in the disbursement process, alleging that unscrupulous person may take advantage of the situation to shortchange the affected people.

Ibrahim Akibu, a resident, called for a proactive and transparent approach to managing the relief materials and funds, and called on civil society organisations, traditional rulers and other respected figures to strictly monitor the disbursement process.

“In the light of vice president’s visit to Mokwa and subsequent donations of the federal government – N2 billion and 20 trucks of grains to the people of Mokwa – as well as other contributions from kind-hearted individuals and organisations – it is crucial that we now move from relief to rebuilding.

“I strongly urge the Niger State Government to immediately constitute a transparent and inclusive committee to manage all donated funds and oversee the resettlement process. This committee should include the deputy governor, commissioners for humanitarian affairs, land and survey, housing and urban renewal, and works; the Ndalile of Mokwa; chairman of Mokwa Local Government, as well as representatives of civil society organisations, the youth, women and victims.

“Their mandate should include accountability, coordination and the commencement of permanent housing for displaced families. They do not only need aid, they deserve dignity, structure and hope for a new beginning,” he advised.

Aishatu Jibrin, who lost all her belongings, voiced frustration over the relief distribution process, saying they had no confidence in some members of the distribution committee. She urged the government to deal directly with the victims.”

A donation tracker revealed that the Niger State Government has so far received N50 million from Senator Sani Musa (Niger East senatorial district), N20 million from the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris Malagi, N20 million from Peter Obi, among other contributions. However, many victims said disbursement was yet to begin.

Weekend Trust also reports that socioeconomic activities in many communities of the affected area have been seriously affected by the collapse of Raba bridge, which connects Mokwa to other places.

Residents said the bridge connected many farming communities around River Niger and Kwara State to the Mokwa busy market.

Liman Abubakar Raba, a resident, said the community had, however, constructed a temporary wooden bridge to avert a complete disruption of business and farming activities. He called on the federal and state governments to expedite action on the reconstruction of the ever-busy bridge.

He said, “Since the collapse of the bridge, many of us can no longer go to market in Mokwa, which usually held every day. Traders from many communities in Kwara State also use the bridge to cross to Mokwa market, but all these have stopped.”

In addition to the cash and material donations by the federal government through Vice President Kashim Shettima, he also promised to authorise the managing director of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company to arrange for a 14MVA transformer to restore power supply in Mokwa.

“I want to assure you that all the issues raised, including the collapsed bridges, would be addressed by the federal government in partnership with the Niger State Government and Mokwa Local Government.

“There are certain responsibilities that belong to the federal government. Certainly, the state government has some responsibilities and even the local government has a duty to serve their people.

“I want to assure you that whatever is needed to be done for you would be done. Mr. President has directed an immediate repair of all the bridges that collapsed. All the drainages in Mokwa town would be constructed. Mr. President has equally directed the Minister of Environment and that of state for Agriculture, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, who is a son of the soil, to ensure an immediate intervention in Mokwa town. Mr. President has authorised the release of N2 billion to immediately commence reconstruction of the houses,” he said.

The acting governor Niger State, Yakubu Garba, had told the vice president during his visit to Mokwa, that the flood severely impacted education and socioeconomic activities by cutting off bridges and roads that students and residents used in accessing schools, markets and farms.

He said, “Currently, people from Raba village can no longer come to Mokwa for economic activities until they travel round about 20km. We need a quick intervention. The state government cannot do these interventions alone. Secondly, students from the other side of the river can no longer come to Mokwa.

“Also, the rail here connects the North and South, but it has been cut. I expected the Federal Ministry of Transport to have come here to ascertain what happened to this rail line.

“Again, we don’t want the women that have been affected to languish in poverty after this disaster. We want the federal government to support the state in empowering these women so that they would have a stake and help themselves. We are already suffering from insecurity and we wouldn’t want these victims abandoned to become security threat,” he said.

Weekend Trust reports that the devastating flood in Mokwa has again exposed flaws in Nigeria’s population documentation system as it has been exceptionally difficult to gather accurate data on missing persons, number of deaths and displaced families.

The situation is also worsened by the presence of densely populated almajirai settlements in the affected communities, where recordkeeping is virtually non-existent. The leader of the Hausa community in the area, Alhaji Tanko Bala, told our correspondent that even the operator of the affected Quranic school had no record of his pupils, a situation that makes it difficult to know the number of deaths and missing Almajirai.

Consequently, the number of missing persons remains unclear as reports vary widely. While some figures appear alarmingly high, others seem grossly understated. This inconsistency has sparked calls from observers for the authorities to expedite the process of verifying and reconciling the data so as to present a clearer picture of the true number of victims.

However, according to the latest update from UNICEF, approximately 2,000 people are still unaccounted for – majority of them children – which contrasts the figure by the Niger State Government of 84 missing persons. The organisation noted that “54 per cent of the affected children were under12 years old.” (Daily Trust)