MAKURDI: A TALE OF RESIDENTS WHO LIVE BY THE RIVER BANKS BUT GO TO BED UNBATHED
By Dr Simon Shachia Oryila
Makurdi, central Nigeria
The inauguration, today, of an 18.8 billon naira Gboko-Buruku water project brings a sigh of relief to residents in that axis. As the people say, water is life, and every human society needs good and enough water.
The water project and the over 83 billon naira bridge project at the River Katsina Ala at Buruku crossing are major projects with significant impact on people’s livelihoods. But, the coming of the Gboko-Buruku water project doesn’t bring the water crisis in Benue State to an end.
A Tiv proverb says when you dwell close to a river, you don’t go to bed without a bath. This, however, isn’t true with Makurdi residents. At the moment, there’s biting water scarcity in Makurdi.
For three months now, the water board has stopped pumping water to residents. The primary source of water now is the ‘mai-ruwa’ truck pushers who get their supply from borehole owners, hand-dug wells, and contaminated ponds.
A truck of water now costs between ₦800-₦1500, depending on the quality of the water source. A family of five need at least three trucks a week. The truck owners are even in sharp demand. Yet, much of the water they supply is not clean and safe for drinking, cooking, or bathing
As may be noted, water scarcity, high cost of water and consumption of bad water have short and long term consequences. Most families and homes do not have enough water for domestic use. Yet, using unclean and unsafe water could negatively affect family members’ personal hygiene and cleanliness.
Water might look cheap and affordable, but buying water over a long period of time depletes family members ‘ purchasing power. Money that should be channelled into family upkeep and other profitable ventures ‘evaporates’ into the air.
In addition, bad water is injurious to health. And the cost of medicare and drugs is prohibitive. Many residents could be at the risk of being infested with water-borne diseases. Untreated water could cause skin infections, stomach aches, and blindness.
Urgent action should be taken by the government to address the problem of water scarcity in Makurdi. This is because people can’t do without water.
