For nearly a decade, residents of Obogoro Community in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State have watched helplessly as the Ekoli River steadily encroaches on their homes, farmlands and public facilities.
The community, situated along the Ekoli River, is among several communities in the state grappling with severe coastal and gully erosion.
Residents said more than 200 homes had been swallowed by the river, while several others are now dangerously close to the eroding riverbank. A community primary school, football field, NYSC lodge and ancestral burial grounds are also said to have been lost to the erosion.
The situation has worsened following recent heavy rainfall, which caused sections of the riverbank to collapse into the swollen river and forced more families to abandon their homes.
A resident, Janet Eseoghene, said several families who previously lived in her compound had relocated because of the advancing river.
“I am a tenant living in this compound. There were other families living here, but they have all left due to fear. Last year, the river was still a few metres away, but now it is at my doorstep,” she said.
“Please, we need help. I have no other place to go. It is risky living here, and I fear for my children too. We are appealing to the relevant authorities to come and help us.”
Another resident, Joel Itortaziba, who is from Ogbia Local Government Area, said residents had become accustomed to hearing the sound of collapsing earth, particularly at night.
“I have been living in Obogoro for two years now. It is not somewhere anyone should live, but because of life and its challenges, we came here,” he said.
“It is terrifying living in this community. Sometimes at night, you hear a hit, which indicates that some land has caved into the river. We really need the help of the government.”
Itortaziba also appealed for urgent intervention, saying a child had recently lost his life in the erosion.
“Children are dying. Just some months back, a child lost his life in the erosion. Government should please help this community,” he said.
The President of the Epie-Atissa Peoples Congress, Obesi Otasume Benjamin, said the scale of the destruction had reduced the once-thriving community to a fraction of its former size.
“The entire river you are seeing here was actually a community. If you were here a few years ago, you would have seen that the community was where this river is right now,” he said.
“Today, the community is no more. What we are seeing is just one quarter of the community that is left. People are dying. How can a full family, mother and children, be eroded away?”
Benjamin said more than 200 houses had already been submerged, while several others remained at imminent risk of collapse.
“People who have homes are now homeless. Some houses are at the edge of the river, knowing that they will slide into the river any moment. Over 200 houses have been submerged into the river,” he said.
He called on the Bayelsa State Government, Federal Government and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to urgently intervene.
The Convener of the #Save Obogoro Community Now# group, Ada Gwegwe, said residents had repeatedly raised the alarm over the erosion for years without securing a lasting solution.
According to her, the Bayelsa State Government awarded a contract to Niger Green Dredging Company to address the erosion, but the project was allegedly abandoned after work commenced.
“We have been on this issue for years now, and we were able to draw the attention of the state and Federal Government. The state government awarded a contract to a firm. They started work and later abandoned the project,” Gwegwe said.
She pointed to a fenced building close to the riverbank and warned that it was at risk of being swept away.
“Behind me is a building, well fenced, that is on the line to slide into the river. This is what this community has been passing through for the past 10 years,” she said.
Gwegwe said millions of naira worth of property had already been lost and appealed to the Federal Government, Bayelsa State Government and the NDDC to intervene.
Residents said formal petitions had also been submitted to lawmakers in the Senate and House of Representatives in an effort to secure federal intervention.
They are calling for a comprehensive shoreline protection and reclamation project, rather than temporary interventions, warning that continued erosion could displace more families.
They also lamented that, despite the loss of homes, farms and community facilities, no permanent accommodation or internally displaced persons’ camp had been provided for residents forced from their homes.
The residents are therefore appealing for urgent action to protect the remaining portion of Obogoro Community and prevent further loss of lives and property to the advancing Ekoli River.
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