The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Adamawa-Taraba state operations office, has begun a five-day workshop in Gombe on strengthening the vision of the agency on building a culture of preparedness, prevention, and response and community resilience in disaster management.
The head of operations in charge of Adamawa, Abbani Imam Garki, stated this while speaking during the opening of the five-day retreat in Gombe Thursday.
Garki said the retreat was directed by the director-general of the agency aimed at bringing the staff of the agency together to “share ideas and experiences, harness strategies with a view to moving the agency forward.”
The head of operations also urged people to clear their drainages and to desist from indiscriminate disposal of waste in waterways.
“As an operation, we have been sensitising members of the public on ways to prevent the effects of floods. We expect that residents will desist from disposing of refuse into waterways, avoid flood-prone areas and stop waiting for the government to dredge.”
Garki also called on the residents to monitor the level of water and leave when necessary so that they would not be caught unawares, urging them to listen and comply with early warnings.
Also speaking, Mr Uba Ayuba, of the Red Cross Society, in his paper on General Principles of Disaster Management in Nigeria, called on NEMA to understand the hazards that result in disasters.
“We should look forward as volunteers as the value of work is in you and not the organisation that employed you,” he said.
