The Senate Leader of the 10th National Assembly, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has partnered with the National Emergency Management Agency(NEMA) for the distribution of multimillion-naira relief materials to rainstorm victims in Ekiti Central Senatorial District of Ekiti State.

The beneficiaries were predominantly residents whose homes were ravaged by the stormy rain that hit the communities on February 11, 2026, leaving hundreds of residents homeless in the process.

The materials were distributed to victims in Irepodun/Irepodun, Ado, Efon and Ijero local government areas in the Ekiti Central Senatorial District.

Senator Bamidele, who represents the Ekiti Central Senatorial District, said the intervention was geared towards mitigating the suffering of the rainstorm victims and offering them a lifeline at this challenging moment.

Bamidele, represented by his Senior Legislative Assistant, Gbenga Banji, expressed sympathy for the victims of the rainstorm disaster, describing the food items and other materials donated as capable of offering temporary relief, pending the rebuilding of their ravaged houses.

The federal lawmaker said he was sad upon learning of the devastating occurrence, saying the prompt provision of palliative materials through NEMA would help offer the required hope to the victims at this time of trial.

The federal lawmaker averred that he was aware of the trauma and harrowing experiences associated with disasters, saying this prompted him to quickly approach NEMA to offer a helping hand and mitigate the excruciating pain associated with such incidents for the victims.

He said, “These food palliatives and other materials were facilitated through me, as the representative of the good people of Ekiti Central Senatorial District, to help the rainstorm victims at this period of grief.

“It was saddening and devastating to see hundreds of buildings blown off by the windstorm at a time when people weren’t prepared for such. I knew what they were passing through, and this gesture is to show empathy and solidarity, that we are with them.

“I want to appeal to our people to always take precautionary measures to avert some of these occurrences through proper maintenance of building structures, planting trees around residential areas, and proper channelisation where necessary to prevent flooding that often happens on a yearly basis”.

The NEMA’s Director General, Mrs Zubaida Umar, described disaster as something that is always sudden, which makes it imperative for residents to always take precautionary measures to prevent being caught in the web of rainstorm, flooding, and other associated vices.

Umar commended Senator Bamidele for quickly approaching the agency to seek emergency help for his constituents, branding the gesture as an example of good representation and empathy for the distraught residents.

The DG urged the beneficiaries to utilise the materials distributed to mitigate their sufferings while efforts are being intensified to rebuild their damaged structures.

Describing the gesture as commendable and signposted good representation on the part of the Senate Leader, the Ajero of Ijero Ekiti, Oba Joseph Adebayo Adewole and monarchs from other notable towns in the district, said the action would go a long way in stabilising the victims.

Oba Adewole added that Senator Bamidele had taken a bold and appropriate step by approaching NEMA to offer the necessary assistance to the victims, saying this would help to alleviate the trauma some of the victims had suffered since the event.

The first-class monarch commended the Senator for not leaving the victims to their fate, saying the shock and scars of the incident had deeply permeated the entire local government and created panic among the residents.