The Adamawa State Government has warned residents against farming, erecting structures, and dumping refuse on waterways ahead of the 2026 rainy season.
Mrs Syngana Dahdah, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, issued the warning during an interview with reporters on Wednesday in Yola.
Dahdah urged residents occupying water channels to vacate immediately to prevent loss of lives and property during flooding.
“Many residents have diverted natural waterways into residential buildings and farmlands, thereby obstructing the free flow of water,” she said.
“We are appealing to them to stop farming, building structures, and dumping refuse on waterways as the rainy season approaches.”
She emphasised that water channels are natural passages that must remain open, warning that blocked waterways often lead to severe flooding during heavy rainfall.
“No matter how long it takes, water will always find its way. Blocking waterways with buildings or farms only exposes communities to danger,” Dahdah added.
The Permanent Secretary also advised farmers to avoid cultivating in flood-prone areas and drainage paths, noting that such practices could harm agricultural productivity and worsen erosion.
Dahdah said the ministry had forwarded a memo to Governor Ahmadu Fintiri regarding the desilting and reconstruction of drainage systems along the Shagari and Yolde Pate axis in Yola South Local Government Area.
She noted that the affected areas experienced severe flooding during the 2025 rainy season due to blocked drains and poor water flow.
According to her, some embankments raised during last year’s irrigation activities also contributed to flooding in parts of the state. The government, she said, would remove these embankments since the irrigation season had ended.
Dahdah advised residents whose houses had been marked for demolition and who had received compensation to vacate the affected areas without delay.
She added that the government would soon begin demolition and drainage expansion projects to reduce the impact of flooding on vulnerable communities.
However, she expressed concern over reports that some flood victims who received compensation allegedly sold the affected houses to unsuspecting buyers instead of vacating them.
“It is unfortunate that some individuals collected compensation from the government and still sold the same houses to innocent people despite knowing the structures would be demolished,” she said.
