Uhuala Obibi Ochasi community cries out to Imo State Govt, FG over erosion menace
Photo : Chief Ikechukwu Ogbuka, the Chairman of the community
By Everest Ezihe, Orlu
As the raining season is fast approaching, there are indications that if no urgent action is taking by Imo State Government or Federal Government, the famous Uhuala Obibi Ochasi community of Obibi ancient autonomous community in Orlu local government area of Imo State may go into extinction, as the community has been invaded with the menace of gully erosion.
The community which is barely five minutes drive from Orlu town has become a shadow of her old self as the erosion which started gradually about 10 years ago from an over flow of Ezize River which is between Umuhu community and Obibi has wrecked havoc for more than 2 kilometers radius of the agrarian community.
The environmental hazard has developed to gully erosion which is presently over 75 meters depth 100 meters width and stretches over 2 kilometers radius of the densely populated community.
The erosion menace despite persistent community and individual efforts have since five years now rendered hundreds of the people, homeless as many ancestral compounds with paradise on earth architecturally designed buildings, with landscaped compounds have been taken over by the erosion’s unleashed mayhem.
The once peaceful and knitting kitted community is presently a shadow of its self, little socio-economic activities and likened to a ghost town as many people have been forced to relocate to distance communities as the effects of the gully erosion have become daily narratives and people are apprehensively living in fears that the forthcoming raining season, if nothing urgent is been doing by either Imo State Government or the Federal Government, the community and its environ may certainly become a historical retrospective.
Thus, Chief Okechukwu Ogbuka, the Chairman of Uhuala Obibi Ochasi community with some other leaders of the community and their illustrious sons in Diaspora like Mr. Magnus Udegbe is crying out to both Imo State Government and Federal Government of Nigeria for an urgent intervention, so as to save the community from further menaces of the erosion.
Udegbe pointed out that in the recent past, the community has severally and painstakingly drawn the attention of the government to the erosion threats, with no positive input warranting the community tasking themselves into addressing the basics but the extent of the gully and devastation so far, it’s an obvious truth that the community or individual efforts will no longer be capable to address the burden.
He reiterated the need for the relevant agencies of the Federal Government and Imo State Government to form a collaborative synergy and quickly address the menace noting that with the speedy deepening and widening of the gully erosion during every rain, he raises alarm that the entire community is on the verge of been destroyed by the environmental factor.
Ogbuka who’s the Chairman of the Community described the environmental hazard as a very big problem that has given the community serious concern and deserves accelerated actions.
He also pointed out that the erosion which started gradually about 10 years ago have pulled down several peoples buildings and destroyed their farm lands.
The community leader passionately appealed to the State and Federal government on the need to give priority attention to the gully erosion before it wrecks more havoc to the ancient community.
The Chairman further lamented that for over 3 years now the people can not access their farmland as well as their kiths and kin in other neighbouring communities because they have been cut off by the widening and deepening of the gully erosion and called for national attention.
