PERISCOPING THE PERENNIAL POTABLE WATER SCARCITY IN EBIRALAND:

Pic. by Daily Trust.
—-Can Governor Ododo Ahmed Usman break the jinx?
By Otori Ozigi .
‘Water is life’ is a general,common statement among the people any where in world.
It is noteworthy that Ebiraland is blessed with no fewer than three major water projects,namely Osara dam,Ekuku dam and Okene water works.
And these projects can easily supply adequate steady clean water to all the communities in the area,all year round,if properly harnessed.
At a dry season like this,if you visit Ebiraland, you would be confronted with the dehumanizing reality of the pain,stress and danger, our women and children are facing everyday in the search of water for drinking, washing , cooking, bathing and other domestic uses.
From the time immemorial, the people of Kogi central have been grappling with the growing challenge of perennial potable water scarcity.
And every attempt in the past to defeat the monster of water scarcity in various communities in the senatorial district,has defied any lasting solution.
As I write this place this morning of February 12,2024, the people of the area where I live, are presently entrapped in another round of excruciating effect of lack of clean water for their normal routine.
Water has run dried up in the community again.
It is so sad and unfortunate that scarcity of portable water has been left to fester for this long, despite the fact that we had the golden opportunity to put a permanent end to the age long problem.
As a matter of fact, Ebiraland produced produced two Commissioners of Water Resources in the last administrative dispensation.
Recall that the former governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello,who is an indigene of Kogi central, declared recently that he awarded the contract and released a total N713,716,887 to a company named,BILVISCO investment Limited in July,2020 for the construction, reticulation and management of Osara portable water scheme.
Expectedly,this good news elicited high expectations and excitement from the populace.
Only God knows whatever happens to this bold step and positive development, aimed at putting a lasting solution to the portable water scarcity in the land.
I was close to tears the other day when the former governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Adoza Bello, was lamenting in public, how all his spirited efforts to solve the perennial potable water scarcity in Ebiraland came to naught.
I can recall too that there was a time in 2012 when Ekuku dam was reportedly included in the National budget for expansion and reticulation,according to then Senator representing Kogi central, Alhaji Nurudeen Abatemi.
Senator Nurudeen boasted, then, that he was prepared to solve the perennial potable water scarcity in the community, in his tenure in office.
And we clapped hands for him, believing that a messiah had come.
Whatever happens to his bold efforts too remains a mystery till date.
Viewed against this background therefore,it is my fervent prayer that the present governor of the state,His Excellency, Alhaji Ododo Ahmed Usman, should sourmon the courage and political will to solve this problem of scarcity of portable water in Ebiraland ,once and for all.
The suffering of our women and children who bear the brunt of persistent scarcity of portable water,more, in Ebiraland should stop.
It is not enough to continue to sink substandard boreholes to address the rising problem.
Our representatives in both State and National Assemblies should strategize on the way forward in getting portable water to the door steps of every household in Kogi central.
Governor Ododo should avoid the mistake of the past and do the needful.
He should not allow the monster of unbridled corruption to swallow his efforts,this time around.
It is high time to save our people from the dangers of waterborne diseases, which they are exposed to by drinking well water and untreated boreholes.
Yes,I believe Governor Ododo Ahmed Usman can break the jinx.
He is a man of honor and impeccable integrity,who is imbued with the capacity, competence and the doggedness to accomplish difficult tasks.
He has the golden opportunity to right the wrongs of the past.
Residents of Lokoja,the capital of the state have also being without clean water for almost two months and the scarcity remains unabated.
Unlike the scarring situation in Kogi central, reliable sources traced that of Lokoja to lack of funds for logistics,coupled with bureaucratic redtapism in ensuring the supply of clean water to the public.
May God help him in this regard.Amen.
Otori Ozigi, a veteran journalist and PR Consultant, writes from Okene, Kogi State.
Additional information by Dawud Ahmed.