Residents of FCT Community Express Concerns Over Water Scarcity

Residents of Dokuma community located in Kawu ward of the Bwari Area Council in the FCT have expressed their frustrations regarding the absence of safe drinking water in their area.

During a visit from Abuja Metro on Saturday, some locals lamented that the unavailability of pipe-borne water has been a significant hurdle for them over the years.

They indicated that they are forced to rely exclusively on a small stream that seeps from beneath a rock, which is also used by cattle for drinking.

Mrs. Abigail Markus, a local housewife, mentioned that she consistently rises at 4 a.m. to access water from the stream. She described a scenario where residents must queue for their turns to collect water.

"Since the water dribbles out slowly from under the rock, women must wait patiently in line for it to accumulate before using calabashes to scoop it out one by one," she shared.

Another resident, David Ayuba, stated that the community has reached out multiple times to the council authorities to request the installation of a borehole, but these initiatives have yet to produce any results.

He observed that there are no operational hand pumps or overhead tanks in the community, which confines them to using the stream as their sole source of water.

"Honestly, it's impossible to count how many requests we have submitted to the Bwari Area Council for a borehole for this community, but as of today, nothing has been done," he said.

Ayuba added that although the community experiences some relief during the rainy season, they suffer severe water shortages as soon as the dry season arrives.

"Our people can only breathe a sigh of relief during the rainy period, but once the dry season begins, we have to travel far to fetch water from the stream," he noted.

Consequently, he urged the council to assist the community by providing a borehole to alleviate the residents' hardships.

An anonymous official from the Bwari Area Council's Works Department informed our reporter over the phone that the council has indeed allocated funds for the drilling of boreholes across various communities, including Dokuma.

"In fact, Dokuma is earmarked to receive a borehole in this year’s budget, pending approval from the Almighty," he stated.