FCT community sharing water with cows begs Wike for borehole

Residents of the Shapi community in Gumbo ward of Kwali Area Council of the FCT have decried the water scarcity in the area, pleading with the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to come to their aid by sinking a borehole in the area.

Locals told City & Crime that they sometimes struggle for water with cows, which often drink from their water ponds.

A resident of Shapi, Emma Yakubu, who spoke on Wednesday, when he led our reporter to a nearby stagnant swamp, where the villagers get their drinking water from.

He said since the existence of the community over 100 years ago, there was no borehole in the community, saying residents have always trekked to the swamp to dig out sand to scoop water for domestic use.

He said he had written severally to the area council authorities to come to the aid of the villagers by sinking a borehole for them but the plea has not yielded a positive response from the council.

A woman, Mrs Asabe Daniel, who also spoke with our reporter at the stream, said she always wakes up as early as 4 am to go to the stream.

“Especially during this dry season, one has to leave home early to go and dig out the swamp and after the water gathered, you will now use calabash to fetch,” she said.

She said the absence of a borehole has been the major problem facing the community, even as she said cows also drink from the swamp.

The chief of the Shapi community, Etsu Ishaku Ibrahim, also expressed concern over the water problem, adding that the village has a population of over 400 but has no access to potable water.

He said politicians had been coming to campaign during elections over the years but they are not doing anything to help them thereafter.

“My subjects always trek to cast votes at the Piri polling unit during elections. So, you can imagine the distance my people covered to go and cast vote during elections only for us to be abandoned thereafter,” he said.

He appealed to the FCT administration to come to the aid of the community by sinking a borehole to alleviate the suffering of the people.

Reacting, an official of the works department of the council, who is also a close ally of the council chairman, but preferred anonymity, said the council had already captured a borehole project for the community in its 2024 budget.