President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to immediately provide relief assistance victims of natural and in some cases avoidable disasters in the country.
A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the president, Mallam Garba Shehu said the presidential directive followed an updated brief by NEMA on the magnitude of havoc wreaked by flash floods, rainstorm, windstorm and fire incidents across the country.
Buhari while expressing heartfelt sympathy with the families of victims who lost their lives, as well as those whose property perished, said his directive to NEMA is to ameliorate the negative effects on the affected persons and communities in all the geo-political zones of the country.
Going forward, the president appealed to Nigerians to without further hesitation, heed early warning instructions by relevant government agencies intended to avert the negative consequences of such natural occurrences in the country.
He further said; “It is important that our people listen and immediately comply with early-warning alerts and forecast by government bodies in order to save lives and property from wanton destruction. As the saying goes, ‘a stitch in time saves nine.”
