Worried by the highly destructive, deadly rage of flooding currently wreaking havoc across the country, the Nigerian Institution of Environmental Engineers (NIEE) has charged the Federal Government to brace up and get much more proactive in the threatening challenge posed by the menace.
Engr. Seun Odukoya, the National Chairman of the institution gave the charge while chatting with journalists at the Annual General Meeting of the Lagos Chapter of the NIEE in Lagos, Wednesday, October 20, 2022.
The concerned veteran environmental engineer lashed out at the Federal Government for paying rather lip service to a life-threatening issue such as flooding which has been on the hike in parts of the country for some months now.
Talking passionately about the menace of flood and its very costly effect on the environment, Odukoya berated the government for positing that it had warned Nigerians, especially those believed to be residing in suspected flood-prone areas to evacuate their coastline habitats ahead of rains.
Odukoya punctured this government position as grossly below expectation, even as he insisted that merely warning the helpless residents was not a solution to the problem.
Rather, the NIEE Fellow charged the government to, as a matter of urgency, brace up to its responsibility and evolve actions that will guarantee a long-lasting solution to the challenge, given that the rainy season has become more unpredictable than ever before as it now lasts much longer into the year even as it also gets consistently heavier than it used to be.
He recalled that the Nigerian Institution of Environmental Engineers has on several occasions developed blueprints and made proposals proffering possible solutions for the government as a professional body made up of trained experts in the proactive handling of environmental issues.
He regretted, however, that to date, the Federal Government, in its wisdom has not taken any tangible step toward implementing any of the solutions recommended by NIEE.
Engr. Yusuf Majolagbe, Vice Chairman, NIEE, Lagos Chapter
The Annual Conference / Annual General Meeting of the Lagos Chapter of NIEE was themed: Understanding Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan.
It discussed a barrage of environmental challenges in Nigeria, chiefly flooding, air pollution, coastal erosion and others which have concerted to result in social economic problems such as homelessness, joblessness and many other vices.
Odukoya was full of accolades for the Lagos Chapter of the institution in recognition of its pace-setting roles in the industry over the years.
In her welcome address at the event, Engr. Abiola Kosegbe, the Chairman of the Lagos chapter of the Nigerian Institution of Environmental Engineers (NIEE) posited that “in order to guarantee better living conditions for the millions of Nigerians, quicker development is required in the light of the country’s (Nigeria’s) rapidly increasing population…’
The NIEE is a division of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) with a central focus on ensuring professional standards to enhance the structural and environmental safety of the nation.