Over 2,800 people from about 1,200 households have been affected by floods in the Patigi local government area of Kwara State, in 2022.
Tribune Online gathered that mostly affected people were farmers residing along river banks in the local government area.
It was also gathered that the affected flood victims in different communities as Edochigi, Gudugi, Mawogi, Pkata Gbaradogi, Sunkuso, Sanchia, Ndachekuta among others, lost millions of naira as houses, rice farmlands, farm produce, and livestock, among others, were affected by the floods.
Thus, in order to ameliorate the suffering of the flood victims, the Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) has commenced the distribution of relief materials worth about N50 million to 1,200 households that were affected.
Speaking at the flag-off of the distribution of relief materials in Patigi, at the weekend, the managing director of HYPPADEC, Alhaji Abubakar Sadiq Yelwa, said the items were distributed to 2,800 beneficiaries affected by the flood in the area.
Some of the items distributed included varying sizes of mattresses, rice, roofing sheets, bath soap, and washing soap, among others.
According to the HYPPADEC boss, represented by the director of community and rural development, Dr Mahmud Muhammed, the commission would also support the affected communities with medical consumables.
Alhaji Abubakar Yelwa, who expressed worry over the refusal of the people living along the river banks to relocate to safer areas, called for the enactment of legislation that will ban people from living along river banks to save their lives.
In his address, the Etsu Patigi, Alhaji Ibrahim Umar Bologi II, commended HYPPADEC for providing relief materials to those affected by flood in the community.
Some residents of the communities affected by the flood in the Patigi local government area, Muhammed Baba, Shaaba Kolo and Ibrahim Idris, appreciated the intervention of HYPPADEC towards alleviating their suffering, describing it as timely.
They also appealed to the federal government to build permanent houses for them in safer areas to enable them to relocate.