IBADAN, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouk, has revealed that contrary to perception, Bayelsa State is not among the 10 most affected states ravaged by flood in the country.
The minister made this known during a media briefing organized by the Presidential Communications Team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday.
She stated this in reaction to a recent claim made by the Leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Edwin Clark.
Chief Clark in his statement said that as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, she was not humane over the treatment of areas hit by floods in Bayelsa and other parts of the South.
Mrs Farouk, however, clarified that she said it is Jigawa that is the most affected by the current floods.
Clark had said: “We have a humanitarian minister that is not humane, who was only active to carry out school feeding of school children who were confined to their homes during the Covid-19 lockdown.
“In such an urgent situation of ravaging flood, she has decided to maintain a disquieting quietness. Bodies like the National Emergency Agency (NEMA), were not able to take proactive measures. Where is the mother of the nation, the First Lady, Mrs. Aisha Buhari? Her fellow women are in deep agony, seeing their children dying of starvation and treatable minor illnesses because there is no medication.”
In her response, Mrs Farouk said the ministry had taken relief materials to Bayelsa through the Nigerian Air Force.
She said it is not true that she is inhumane, noting that the flood disaster is a national issue and she is performing her duty to the best of her ability.
“Merely looking at me, you know that I am humane,” she said.
