The Management of Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority, OORBDA, has restated that the release of water from its Oyan Dam facility was not the cause of the perennial flooding affecting communities in Isheri area of the borderline between Ogun and Lagos States.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, OORBDA, Dr Deji Ashiru stated this while speaking at a town hall meeting with property owners in the area, under the aegis of Lagos /Ogun River Basin Communities Association.
Dr Ashiru while disclosing that 17.4 million litres of water was being released gradually on daily basis at the dam, said the authority had prioritised the welfare of residents, noting that the entire community would have been swept away if the water flow from Oyan Dam had not been gated appropriately.
Dr Ashiru who maintained that 52 other ungated tributaries to the Ogun River could be fuelling the rising water levels also announced plans by the OORBDA to access ecological funds for the construction of another dam, downstream of the Oyan River, with a view to addressing the challenge of flooding, apart from ongoing efforts to dredge both the Oyan and Ogun rivers.
Responding, the Chairman, Lagos /Ogun River Basin Communities Association, Mr Olarewaju Falade applauded the Dam Basin Development Authority’s commitment to addressing the menace which had displaced some property owners from the community.
Mr Falade who implored the stakeholders to bridge the communication gap between the OORBDA management and the residents, said the statistics on daily release of water from the Oyan Dam would help in dousing the fears that the process was responsible for incessant flooding in the affected areas.
Oluwatoyin Adegoke