Mr. Nsima Ekere, Akwa Ibom State Deputy Governor, has said that the current of water discharged from the newly-commissioned pipe-jacking underground drainage system in Uyo, the state capital, was capable of generating electricity.

Speaking when he paid a courtesy call on his Delta State counterpart, Prof. Amos Utuama, in Asaba, Mr. Ekere said the drainage system, designed in Denmark, was the first of its kind in the country.

He pointed out that the drainage system, which was constructed by Julius Berger, was one of the projects embarked upon by Governor Godswill Akpabio in the last four years to tackle the challenges of perennial flooding in Uyo.

The Deputy Governor said the project earned the commendation of President Goodluck Jonathan, who described it as a unique attempt to tackle natural disasters, such as flood, to which the South-South Zone was prone.

He commended the Delta State Government for  also providing infrastructure to aid socio-economic growth in the state, especially the Asaba International Airport and the Industrial City.

With such industrialisation project, which he said was similar to the Ibaka Industrial City in Akwa Ibom, Mr. Ekere said employment opportunities would be created for the teeming youths, thereby growing the economy and reducing poverty and crime rate in the society.

He congratulated the Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, and his deputy on their overwhelming victory at the polls, twice within three months, reasoning that it was the people’s way of showing appreciation for the achievements of the administration in the last four years.

On his part, the Delta State Deputy Governor, Prof.Amos Utuama, said by constructing the underground drainage system, Akwa Ibom has taken the lead in the fight against natural disasters and declared that other states in the Niger Delta needed to borrow a leaf from the initiative.

Emphasizing the need for proactive measures in the fight against natural disasters, he cited the devastating effect of flooding on a technologically-advanced nation as Japan, saying that Nigeria might suffer more should such magnitude of flood be experienced.

Prof. Utuama thanked the Akwa Ibom state Deputy Governor for coming to Delta State for the NEMA workshop on climate change and expressed the hope that states in the South-South Zone, which were prone to ocean surge, oil spill and other natural disasters, would use the knowledge gained to protect their environment.