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[OPINION] The Cry Of The Waters: When Flood Became A Funeral

By Israel Adebiyi
In the days when the forest still spoke and rivers still held secrets, there was a tale the elders told of a stubborn village. This village, they said, was warned by the river goddess that heavy rains were coming. “Move to higher ground,” she whispered through the winds. But the people, confident in their mud huts and ancestral trees, scoffed. The rains came, and so did the water. Not as a blessing, but as a grave. By morning, the village was no more—only silence and soaked soil remained.
This is no longer folklore. This is Mokwa.
At the last count, over 200 lifeless bodies have been pulled from the fury of floodwaters in Mokwa Local Government Area of Niger State. Children, women, men—entire households swallowed by what should have been a predictable, preventable disaster. Homes have turned to ruins, schools into swamps, and churches into makeshift morgues. Thousands are now displaced, staring into an uncertain future, and the numbers—like the waters—keep rising.
Year after year, we watch this horror movie unfold, always with fresh cast members and a bloodier script. Yet, nothing seems to change.
The tragedy of Mokwa is not just about water. It is a portrait of systemic rot—of repeated failure across every level of governance. It is the failure of residents who, either out of ignorance or fatalistic resignation, ignore flood alerts. It is the failure of state governments who do not even bother to draw evacuation maps, build retention basins, or construct climate-resilient housing. It is the unforgivable failure of the federal government, which seems to think emergency response begins after the bodies begin to rot.
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To make matters worse, we are watching a theatre of performative concern unfold. Politicians, freshly powdered for the cameras, are arriving with bags of rice, cheques, and empty empathy. They make loud donations, pose with grieving mothers, and deliver soundbites for prime-time television. But what they do not deliver is a comprehensive flood mitigation plan. What they never unveil is a blueprint to stop this nightmare from happening again. The donations are transactional; the tragedy, cyclical.
This is not new. We have seen this same charade after the 2012 floods that displaced over two million Nigerians across 30 states. Again in 2018, major parts of Benue, Anambra, and Delta were submerged. In 2022, over 600 lives were lost and 1.4 million people displaced in what was declared one of Nigeria’s worst natural disasters in decades. Each time, committees are formed, relief is shared, and a deafening silence follows. Until the next flood comes. We are trapped in a loop of disaster and denial.
What is the point of NIMET’s weather forecasts if nobody acts on them? What use is NEMA if it only arrives after villages have become watery graves? Why do state governments scramble to distribute relief materials instead of investing in pre-flood interventions? Why do we wait to wail when we could act to prevent?
Experts have long warned of Nigeria’s vulnerability to climate-induced disasters, yet there is no national flood risk atlas, no coordinated relocation policy, and certainly no political will to dredge rivers or enforce building codes near water bodies. In places like Mokwa, urban planning is a myth, and informal settlements mushroom in high-risk areas without scrutiny.
The contributory causes of flooding in Nigeria are glaring—blocked drainages, unregulated deforestation, poor waste disposal, construction across waterways, failure to release water from dams gradually, and the backflow from neighboring countries like Cameroon during heavy rains. But perhaps the greatest culprit is the pervasive absence of political foresight and empathy.
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We can no longer pretend that floods are “natural disasters.” They are man-made catastrophes aided by neglect and ignorance. There is nothing natural about people living in areas that should have long been declared unsafe. There is nothing natural about public officials failing to prioritize environmental sustainability in their budgets. There is certainly nothing natural about losing 200 lives in one sweep of water and acting as though it were a minor event.
Mokwa is a metaphor for all of us. It is the consequence of our national amnesia—our strange habit of mourning loudly and forgetting quickly. In a few weeks, the media frenzy will die down, the politicians will return to their SUVs, and displaced residents will return to ruins, left alone with trauma and mud. Until the next rainfall.
We are long past the time of crocodile tears. What we need is a flood of action. We need governments—local, state, and federal—to begin treating flood prevention as a national security issue. We need real-time data, engineering solutions, ecological restoration, and urban planning. But most of all, we need political leaders who feel the pain of their people.
Because when flood becomes funeral, the nation itself begins to drown.
News
Transfer: Premier League Clubs Scramble For Dele-Bashiru
Lazio midfielder, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru is a subject of interest from three Premier League clubs, according to Sky Sports.
Lazio reportedly rejected offers from Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth for the Nigeria international in January.
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La Biancolesti are bracing for more interest in Dele-Bashiru ahead of the summer transfer window, according to Sky Sports.
The 24-year-old has two years left on his contract with the Serie A club.
The attacking midfielder joined the Rome-based club from Turkish Super Lig outfit Hatayspor in 2024.
He has been a regular feature for Lazio this season.
News
Xenophobic Attacks: Nigerian Students To Picket MTN, MultiChoice, Other Businesses
The leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS South-West Zone D, has announced plans to picket South African companies in Nigeria following the ongoing xenophobic attacks in the country.
DAILY POST reports that some Nigerians were recently killed in South Africa over the violent attacks.
A statement issued to newsmen by Comrade Adeyemo Josiah Kayode, Coordinator, NANS South-West, Zone D, said that the association is mobilizing to take decisive and lawful action by organizing peaceful picketing and mass advocacy against South African business interests operating in Nigeria.
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“We categorically state that the continued targeting of Nigerians under any guise is unacceptable and must come to an immediate end.
“This will include major corporations such as MTN Group and MultiChoice Group. It is morally indefensible for businesses to thrive in an environment where the lives of Nigerians are protected, while Nigerians are subjected to fear and violence elsewhere.
“This contradiction will no longer be tolerated,” the statement said.
News
N5m, N10m Zero-interest Loans: SheVentures Opens Applications For Women Entrepreneurs
First City Monument Bank (FCMB) has opened a new round of applications for its SheVentures proposition, offering zero-interest loans of up to ₦10 million to women entrepreneurs to ease access to working capital and support business growth.
The facility provides loans ranging from ₦500,000 to ₦5 million under a general category, and ₦5 million to ₦10 million for sector-specific businesses, with funding capped at up to 50% of an applicant’s average monthly turnover.
At the centre of the offering is a 0% interest rate, with all charges embedded in a transparent structure.
Repayment is structured over four or six months, allowing businesses to match obligations with their cash flow cycles.
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Yemisi Edun, Managing Director and Chief Executive of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), said the initiative reflects a deliberate approach to inclusive growth.
“Inclusive growth requires access to capital and the right conditions for businesses to deploy that capital effectively.
“Women-led enterprises are critical to economic activity, yet they face structural barriers.
This intervention aims to help close that gap by providing financing that supports job creation, business expansion, and long-term sustainability for women entrepreneurs.”
“Access to affordable finance remains a major constraint for women entrepreneurs,” said Nnenna Jacob-Ogogo, Group Head, SheVentures and Impact Segments at First City Monument Bank (FCMB).
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“By removing the cost barrier and offering quick, flexible funding, this zero-interest loan is designed to safeguard existing jobs, enable businesses to invest in growth initiatives, and foster resilience in challenging economic conditions.”
Women-owned businesses account for a significant share of Nigeria’s small and medium-sized enterprises but continue to face high borrowing costs and limited access to credit.
Through these efforts, SheVentures tackles persistent financing gaps facing women-led businesses, combining targeted funding with broader support to empower women entrepreneurs, encourage business innovation, and enhance their ability to compete on a national scale.
Applications for the zero-interest loan are now open.Apply now.
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