By Chidi Nkwopara
FOR the people of Uzoubi, Umuna, Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State what began as a small season challenge  has today snowballed into a huge disaster.

Trouble began in 1984, when  Umusasa, one of the five villages in Umuna experienced its first flooding. In 1986, the flood spilled over, destroying farmlands and crops, buildings collapsed, domestic animals drowned and household furniture were destroyed.

Today, Umuna has become a pilgrimage centre of sorts where people go to reflect on the disastrous work of nature. To some scholars, the community has become an excursion site where they see and record their findings for the advancement of knowledge. To yet another group of visitors, the flood site is a tourist attraction, a seven-day wonder and  people are simply amazed at how  residential and commercial buildings were taken over by flood and their occupants summarily sacked.

Uzoubi, Umuna, is best described as a community in the valley but presently houses some of the major landmarks associated with Orlu local council area. Apart from being thickly populated, this troubled community boasts of the magnificent and soul-uplifting Saint Joseph’s Catholic Church, the Orie Ugwu and Orlu International Markets, as well as Evan Enwerem University Teaching Hospital.

On June 27, 2005, the traditional ruler of the community, Eze Boniface C. Okereke, the President General, Chief Chris Uzoagba and Secretary General, Chief Bob Onyeje, sent a letter to one of their own and the immediate past governor of the state, Chief Achike Udenwa, titled:  “Flood water claims human life in Uzoubi-Umuna”.

Residential buildings sacked by flood in Umuna.

This was their complaint: “The yearly event in Uzoubi-Umuna for the past 18 years has registered its arrival this year with a claim of the life of a child of about 12 months. This time, a son of Mr. Raymond Duruiheoma, a native of Atta in Njaba Local Government Area, residing at 2, Duruaku Street, Uzoubi-Umuna. This incident happened 12th June, 2005. Properties lost by the residents of the said building are estimated in millions of Naira”.

They also told Udenwa in the said letter that barely two weeks after another 18-hour torrential rain hit the community, adding that the additional water over ran the entire community. They mentioned the worst hit areas as the royal father’s palace, Duruaku Street, Umusasa Road, Egbunine Street, Nwangaji Street, Umudiato Road, Ebenator Road, Amaigbo Road, Central School 1 premises, Saint Joseph’s Catholic Church premises and Umuorji Street.

Explaining how the 12-month old boy died in the flood, the royal father said: “On this fateful day, the flood was beyond the control of the dwarf walls, as it pulled down the perimeter wall and covered all the rooms downstairs at 1 Eze Okereke Road”.

An enraged traditional ruler told Vanguard Metro  that “Chief Udenwa did nothing to ameliorate the plight of his brothers in Uzoubi-Umuna until he left office”. He recalled with grief how perimeter fencing of several buildings was pulled down by the angry flood.

“About 10,000 residential and commercial buildings are submerged yearly in flood and properties conservatively estimated at billions of Naira have been lost to the flood. Sheep, goats, rams, dogs, chickens and other domestic birds were drowned”, the royal father lamented.

He recalled that the attempt by the past administration to give access roads to Orlu International Market and the Teaching Hospital without defined flood discharge points has rendered many living at the East-end of the International market homeless. The same poor planning affected the construction work at Amaigbo Road, hence the over flooding of the Catholic Church premises and the buildings around it.

Another pathetic aspect of the flood disaster is that of the  primary school built in 1919 by the Catholic Church which is on the verge of being  closed down. If this  happens, what is the fate  of the children of school age in this area is the question begging for answer.

Eze Okereke disclosed that early 2005, FERMA attempted to rehabilitate the Amaigbo Road but the angry flood sacked them and the job has remained unattended to till date, despite the ray of hope ignited in 2009 by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).

According to a BPP document, BPP/S.1/Vol.VII/09/059, dated May 21, 2009 and captioned “Certificate of no objection for award of contract”, the BPP stated: “Having examined your request and all the documents forwarded confirms that the project has satisfied all due process requirements for issuance of no objection for the award of the contract”.

While giving the project name as “construction of Umuna Erosion Control Works at Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State”, BPP gave the name of the project contractor and cost as Messrs C.L.S. Limited and N119,632,175.30 respectively.

The BPP document which was signed by the Director General, Engr. Emeka M. Ezeh and Engr. Nebolisa O. Emodi, disclosed that the source of funding is the N120 million under the Ecological Fund as approved by Mr. President, while the implementing Ministry/Agency is the National Committee on Ecological Problems (NCEP)/Anambra-Imo River Basin Development Authority.

The question now is: When will this project, which was approved in May 21, 2009, take off? Until the project  commences and is completed, the villagers  remain refugees in their land.