Osun State government, Thursday, commenced the dredging of streams and clearing of waterways in Osogbo, the state capital, to prevent flooding in expectation of heavy rains.
The state governor, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, while inspecting the exercise, warned residents against indiscriminate refuse dumping in waterways.
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He called for attitudinal change among the residents to waste disposal and management, saying government was committed to continually ensuring a flood-free state.
Osun is one of the states that the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had warned to prepare for imminent flooding between the month of August and October this year.
The NEMA Director of Operations in charge of Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states, Mr Olusegun Afolayan, said 28 states and 102 local government areas in the country risked being flooded due to impending heavy rainfall.
Addressing journalists shortly after the inspection tour, Oyetola said his administration had come up with a sustainable way of managing its rivers, streams and waterways to forestall possible flooding.
He said the government would not relent in its efforts at continuing to open up the state’s rivers and channelising its waterways and streams to ensure free flow of water.
“We are doing this to ensure that we do not experience flooding in our state.
“Ordinarily, dredging has become a routine exercise that we do on a regular basis.
“We dredge our streams, waterways and canals in anticipation of flood.
“With this, we shouldn’t be thinking of flooding in this axis.
“This exercise is not limited to this place, it cuts across all strategic places across the state,” the governor said.
He disclosed that the government had identified 17 critical areas to be dredged and channelised.
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