NASSEMA Cites Personnel Shortage For Emergency Response Delays
The Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency has attributed delays in responding to emergency cases in the state to a lack of specialised personnel and a technical unit within the agency.
The Director-General of the Agency, Barrister Benjamin Akwash, made this known while defending the agency’s expenditures for the second quarter of 2026 at the State Assembly.
Appearing before the Solomon Akwashiki-led Public Accounts Committee, the management of the Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency defended its expenditures for the second quarter of 2026, where operational issues hampering quick responses to emergencies were discussed.
According to the Director-General of the Agency, Barrister Benjamin Akwash, the major hindrances include a lack of specialised personnel, professional units, relief and rehabilitation gadgets, as well as medical and technical appliances, which are hampering responses during emergencies. He therefore called on the State House of Assembly to intervene.
While pledging to engage the appropriate quarters to ensure a different narrative in emergency response management, the committee’s Chairman, Solomon Akwashiki, commended Barrister Benjamin Akwash for bringing innovations into disaster management in Nasarawa State.
On the environment, the committee expressed dissatisfaction with the continuous poor performance of the Nasarawa State Environmental Protection Agency year in, year out, saying the presence of the agency is not felt in the state, with its activities reduced to mere lip service due to the absence of manpower and operational tools.
The Committee on Environment was shocked to discover that the vehicles used by the Nasarawa State Environmental Protection Agency were purchased since the 1990s. This prompted the Chairman of the Committee, Mohammed Adamu Omadefu, to call on the State Government to equip the agency with manpower and operational tools, given the negative impact of climate change on the environment.
Meanwhile, the Dr. Peter Akwe-led Agriculture Committee hosted the management of FADAMA-NGCares, where issues of rural development topped discussions, just as the Women Affairs Committee Chairman, Dr. Hajara Danyaro, while interfacing with the management of the Ministry of Women Affairs, commended Governor Abdullahi Sule for prioritising the plight of women in the state.
