When FCDA Negative Rhetorics During The Abuja Flood Disaster Failed The Citizens They Swore To Protect

By AVM (RTD) AKUGBE IYAMU MNSA fsi 

PRESIDENT ASSOCIATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE PRACTITIONERS 

CONSULTANT ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND ANALYST ON ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND COMMENTATOR ON NATIONAL ISSUES. 

Nigerians love misrepresentation in simple straight forward matters. That is why many Nigerians will pick up simple matters and embark on a voyage of recklessness in an effort to read different meaning to simple issues. The recent negative trend in the flooding of Abuja need to worry us for the simple reason that we now chose propaganda and sloganeering to empathy. The clearly showed that benefits of the constitution and nationalism are yet to bring better behaviours and good reading of issues.

The FCDA rhetorics revealed that many Nigerians embrace old fashioned fault lines of political loyalty, think and reason in that prismatic world. This situation has replaced our humanity significantly, jaundiced and distorted the Nigeria of our dreams. My focus today is the reaction of the FCDA leadership on the plight of the victims of the Abuja flooding. It was a solemn moment when empathy was lacking.

Every Nigerian including the flood victims considered the outburst of the leadership as inappropriate rhetorics and a bad job for a good situation. FCDA leadership was scavenging for excuses to replace empathy in the plight of the victims in their time of economic stress. It was insensitive to replace victimhood and sympathy with negative rhetorics in a distressed environment. We have gone past the point where individuals, entities and institutions will abandon the substance to chase political correctness.

Unfortunately,leaders keep acting and talking in manners that raised doubts about whether mouthing political correctness in disaster isn’t hypocrisy and sloganeering because hypocrisy is failing to subject yourself to the standard set for others and sloganeering is something repeated when in your mind you know you don’t mean it. Abuja flooding was FCDA on trial but they cut their nose to spite their face. This clearly showed that the country need institutions that eschew lack of empathy.

The Abuja flooding may not have resulted to outrage against the authorities but the disaster firmly placed the citizens into more economic loss and crisis. The statement of the FCDA failed the country and the citizens. The Abuja flooding raises concerns that is begging for answers. The negative rhetorics forced other citizens to wake up to what could eventually grow into a national catastrophe of existential consequences without knowing who the victims could be and what fate may befall them. When personalities with exposure chose self preservation and political correctness over the survival of their citizens, citizens are left with frustration, dejection, despondency and increasing depression. The truth is the country has witnessed some gains in flood disaster management but Lagos and Abuja flooding significantly reversed such gains.

WARNING!!!!!!!

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