The death of 11 female teenagers and three other girls on rivers Sarkin Pawa and Guni in Munya local government area of Niger state throws up an age-long problem that would continue to bring tears to many eyes across the state.
The only access ‘road’ shows why the constant boat mishaps in Old Dangunu, Guni and other communities around the Shiroro Dam have become a reality the people of the area must live with.
A lonely foot path formed through decades of use by the natives disappeared through the thick bushes and farm beds of different crops towards Old Dangunu at a point along the worn out township road in Sarkin Power, the headquarters of Munya local government area of Niger State.
Only a few profit-minded commercial motorcyclists could brave the path which has become a death trap at this time with the rainy season when visitors are handy. And the death of 11 teenage girls on river Sarkin Power penultimate Tuesday and three others on river Guni two days earlier have increased the traffic of government officials to the sleepy fishing communities usually only remembered whenever tragedy strikes.
The two incidents of August 21 and 24 have upped the stake for commercial motorcyclists. Officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) who dashed in for an on-the-spot assessment of the circumstances that led to the death of the girls had to pack their air-conditioned vehicles at the premises of the local government secretariat for an open-air ride on the popular okada.
Garba Dauda, an okada rider agreed that his daily proceeds from the business have increased since the two incidents. But it is not really an easy ride to Old Dangunu even on motorcycles at this time of the year. River Jatau is an obstacle every prospective visitor to the area would dread. Its water level increases with each rainfall. “It is advisable to avoid it any day it rains,” Garba agreed.
It is also very treacherous. A visitor could behold the sand underneath at a glance, but Garba insists its depth could drown a 10-year-old who cannot swim well. “You must also keep to particular route when crossing,” he said. A cyclist and his passenger must also cross the stream by foot at some points.
There are also two other smaller streams to traverse on the way to Old Dagunu with hindrances such as muddy, slippery points along the path. But it apparently also has its attraction and beauty. The narrow path opens up to a rich, large expanse of green vegetation and hectares of every crop imaginable, stretching to the foot of undulating mountains on one side, and the bank of an endless flow of river on the other. Garba said the larger part of the farm is actually in the water having been submerged by the river.
Between the river and the mountains sits Old Dangunu still in mourning of its many loses. It is a community of about 80 huts, most of which are weather-beaten with a lot of visible ageing effects. It is populated by migrant fishermen from Kebbi State. The two zinced structures in the sleepy community are the mosque and a block of three classrooms lacking doors and windows. It was really in the backwoods, cut off from civilization.
The men and boys sat on mats laid out at what seems like a village square. The eldest in white caftan, Malam Muhammad Sani Kura, apparently oblivious of activities around, stared vacantly at objects only his mind could appreciate. He only acknowledged greetings with nods as visitors offered their sympathies.
The Sarakin Ruwa’s deputy, Lawal Saleh, told Daily Trust on Sunday that he had buried a grandson the day before. “Salisu’s temperature suddenly rose at night but before they could take him to the primary health care facility at the council headquarters, he had died on the mother’s back where he was strapped,” he explained.
But that was not his main source of sorrow. He had lost three daughters – Ikilima Sani, Fatima Sani and Hafsat Sani – in the capsized boat. And to add to the pain, Munawwara, Firdausu, the two Zainab and Naja’atu, Ladidi, Balaraba who also perished in the incident were all his grandchildren.
They were all aged between six and 11 and were returning home from the farm where they went to assist a Gwari neighbour across the river to harvest groundnut. Their work was done and as it was always the case, they rented a canoe from a fisherman at the river bank to convey them home but fate played a fast one on them.
The girls were said to have paddled the canoe themselves. The Sarkin Ruwa’s deputy said every child learnt the art early in life in the riverine communities around the area and “they were also good swimmers.” But their arms were no longer strong enough for the wave this time of the year when the water level increases, especially with Shirroro dam already shut.
The Sarkin Ruwa’s deputy, who led his men on the rescue operation, tells the story of how their lifeless bodies were recovered and interred later that night. “We couldn’t take the corpses home for the burial ritual because the women would be devastated,” he explained.
But they were already devastated by the news of the girls’ early exit from the world. A shrill cry cut across the community from clusters of huts nearby. It was that of Aisha, whose only child also died in the crisis. She was away for a condolence in far way Kebbi State a day before our correspondent visited the community. “She has been like that since she returned yesterday,” the Mai Angwa, Haliru Idris, said.
They could only point at where the deceased were buried in the order according to their age close to the bank of the river.
The Mai Angwa prayed that such an incident would not happen again but deep down he acknowledged the danger would always lurk around.
It didn’t just happen on August 21 and 24. It is almost a daily occurrence this time of the year, the Sarkin Ruwa’s deputy pointed out. It is the number this time that attracted the government. It is now an emergency situation that deserves official attention.
But even the government at all levels and its agencies seem helpless in the face of the calamity. Council officials led by the director of personnel management of Munya LGA, Abdulkadir Bida got to the scene and the communities first. They listened to the narratives of how it happened and took note as well as pictures. They then wrote to the ministry of local government affairs, NEMA and the state-owned emergency agency. Officials of the two emergency bodies dashed down to Old Dangunu and Guni and also took notes as well as offered condolences and promised to get back.
None of the officials had returned to the affected communities as at the time of filling this report, while the state government said it has concluded plans to do the needful through the appropriate institution.
According to the chief press secretary to Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, Ibraheem Dooba, the government would empower NSEMA to provide life jackets for the use of the people of all areas prone to such disaster. He also promised that relief materials would be sent through the same agency to mitigate the suffering of the people in Old Dangunu and Guni.
All these, he said, are temporary measures. In the long term, he said, government would evolve a framework to harness the rich potentials of the many rivers that abound in the state for revenue purpose. “That way, the activities of the farmers and fishermen as well as boat owners would be regulated,” he noted.
But this is not the first time such incidents would happen across the riverine areas of the state and even relief materials promised hardly get to the people of the affected communities.
On the same Sarkin Power River, about 74 people perished in 1998, followed by an undisclosed number two years later. As close as 2013, precisely on March 3, 20 adults and six children, according to records obtained by Daily Trust, perished in Tugan Nailo in Gumgun district of Borgu local government area of the state. Our correspondent also learnt that even the fund approved for the relatives of the deceased was not released to them two years after the incident.
Also, in October 3 of the same year two adults and 16 children died on Ulakami, in Dukka ward in the same local government area. The state government only released money for the burial expenses but intervention to prevent further death around the area was ignored.
Tragedy also struck again in Malala also in Borgu and Gbajibo in Mokwa local government area on June 13, killing two people in its wake. In the most recent incident, rescue operations were hardly handy. In the case of Ulakami for instance, of the 20 survivors rescued, 10 of them were brought out of the river by a 12-year-old boy who got tired in the process and couldn’t continue.
Experts at a workshop organized by NEMA in Minna few days after the Old Dagunu incident were unanimous that local divers could be trained on rescue operation and deployed to keep watch at disaster-prone areas across the state. They also advocated the need for enlightenment campaign on the danger inherent on the waters for locals.
Daily Trust’s finding shows that the activities of transporters are left unregulated. “You just buy a boat or canoe and deploy it in the water and business starts. Nobody tells you how many people you can carry per trip”, a transporter disclosed.
Our correspondent also noticed that most of the boats are too old and worn out for operation. In the Tungan Nailo incident, a boat split in two midway through the journey, taking its contents with it. Sources said it has been in the owner’s family for several decades and inherited through generations. He said government could buy new boats and sell even if on hire purchase basis to transporters who would pay in installments until the amount is settled.
Findings also showed that despite the incessant mishaps, authorities have not provided life jackets for use in the disaster-prone areas. There are also no ambulance boats anywhere to provide first aid services in the event of an accident.
The Mai Angwa merely shrugged off comment that government would likely intervene to end the mishaps. “They always come during campaign and make promises only to stay away and return when another election approaches. They promised to dig borehole for us; they said they will build a primary healthcare facility but we still drink the water from the river today,” he said with apparent resignation to fate.
well as pictures. They then wrote to the ministry of local government affairs, NEMA and the state-owned emergency agency. Officials of the two emergency bodies dashed down to Old Dangunu and Guni and also took notes as well as offered condolences and promised to get back.
None of the officials had returned to the affected communities as at the time of filling this report, while the state government said it has concluded plans to do the needful through the appropriate institution.
According to the chief press secretary to Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, Ibraheem Dooba, the government would empower NSEMA to provide life jackets for the use of the people of all areas prone to such disaster. He also promised that relief materials would be sent through the same agency to mitigate the suffering of the people in Old Dangunu and Guni.
All these, he said, are temporary measures. In the long term, he said, government would evolve a framework to harness the rich potentials of the many rivers that abound in the state for revenue purpose. “That way, the activities of the farmers and fishermen as well as boat owners would be regulated,” he noted.
But this is not the first time such incidents would happen across the riverine areas of the state and even relief materials promised hardly get to the people of the affected communities.
On the same Sarkin Power River, about 74 people perished in 1998, followed by an undisclosed number two years later. As close as 2013, precisely on March 3, 20 adults and six children, according to records obtained by Daily Trust, perished in Tugan Nailo in Gumgun district of Borgu local government area of the state. Our correspondent also learnt that even the fund approved for the relatives of the deceased was not released to them two years after the incident.
Also, in October 3 of the same year two adults and 16 children died on Ulakami, in Dukka ward in the same local government area. The state government only released money for the burial expenses but intervention to prevent further death around the area was ignored.
Tragedy also struck again in Malala also in Borgu and Gbajibo in Mokwa local government area on June 13, killing two people in its wake. In the most recent incident, rescue operations were hardly handy. In the case of Ulakami for instance, of the 20 survivors rescued, 10 of them were brought out of the river by a 12-year-old boy who got tired in the process and couldn’t continue.
Experts at a workshop organized by NEMA in Minna few days after the Old Dagunu incident were unanimous that local divers could be trained on rescue operation and deployed to keep watch at disaster-prone areas across the state. They also advocated the need for enlightenment campaign on the danger inherent on the waters for locals.
Daily Trust’s finding shows that the activities of transporters are left unregulated. “You just buy a boat or canoe and deploy it in the water and business starts. Nobody tells you how many people you can carry per trip”, a transporter disclosed.
Our correspondent also noticed that most of the boats are too old and worn out for operation. In the Tungan Nailo incident, a boat split in two midway through the journey, taking its contents with it. Sources said it has been in the owner’s family for several decades and inherited through generations. He said government could buy new boats and sell even if on hire purchase basis to transporters who would pay in installments until the amount is settled.
Findings also showed that despite the incessant mishaps, authorities have not provided life jackets for use in the disaster-prone areas. There are also no ambulance boats anywhere to provide first aid services in the event of an accident.
The Mai Angwa merely shrugged off comment that government would likely intervene to end the mishaps. “They always come during campaign and make promises only to stay away and return when another election approaches. They promised to dig borehole for us; they said they will build a primary healthcare facility but we still drink the water from the river today,” he said with apparent resignation to fate.
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