The governorship candidate of the Allied People’s Movement, Hon. Adekunle Akinlade, has reacted to the torrential downpour that submerged many areas in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Saturday.
Akinlade, who is now a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change in the 8th Assembly and the closest rival to Governor Dapo Abiodun in 2019 election.
DAILY POST reported on Saturday that flood wreaked havoc in Abeokuta, washing away properties worth millions of Naira.
But, the Ogun State Government, on Sunday, vowed to demolish houses on water channels across the state.
Reacting through a statement made available to DAILY POST by his Media Aide, Azeez Adelani, on Monday, Akinlade called on the Ogun State Government led by Governor Abiodun to invest in practical flood control mechanisms, such as the construction of flood ways (man-made channels to divert floodwater).
Akinlade said this is more appropriate rather than threatening to demolish properties in Abeokuta.
While sympathizing with flood victims across the state, Akinlade said, “the problem of flood remains secondary damages relating to climate change.”
He noted that it is most unfortunate that anyone will reduce such calamity to a blame game.
“Rather than deploying cyberattacks, the government should as a matter of urgency, set in motion, the process of educating our people on the effects of climate change,” he said.
According to him, “Unplanned developments, increase in heavy precipitation (heavy rain), rising maximum temperature, rising sea level amongst other challenges cause floods,” adding that “the construction of embankments in flood-prone areas will greatly help in reducing the adverse effect of flooding.”
He added that the rainy seasons will always come, “but we can develop ways to adapt by domesticating the whole process of flood control.”
To him, the demolition of buildings can never be a viable solution to flood control, except in extreme cases.
As the ruling party, the Ipokia-born politician maintained that “we owe it to the generality of our people across the state to give responsive governance devoid of shortsightedness or excuses.”
“Although no government can solve all the changes of the state within a given tenure, concerted efforts must be made to alleviate the sufferings of the masses”, Akinlade stated.
The former lawmaker emphasized, “that qualitative service delivery to the people of Ogun State can only be attained through character, capacity and passion of its leaders.”
