…As State Government warns against politicizing issue of water in Sokoto
Gbolahan Salman Sokoto
As water scarcity bites harder in some parts of Sokoto metropolis, the residents of some communities in the city have commended Senator Aliyu Wamakko, representing Sokoto North Senatorial District, for sustaining water supply to them.
The Sokoto State government however warned against continuous politicising of issue of water scarcity which it said the scarcity was as a result of ongoing developmental projects within the state.
Some of the residents who spoke to newsmen includes those of Kofar Rini, Masallacin Shehu, Assada and other adjoining communities praised Wamakko for ensuring his gesture reaches the nooks and crannies of the city .
According to them, the laudable gesture of the former Governor of the state had greatly alleviated their suffering, occasioned by the acute dearth of potable water from the State Water Board.
The elated residents, who spoke on the development, lamented how they had hitherto faced formidable difficulties in sourcing potable water before the commencement of the noble gesture by Wamakko.
” It was really a Herculean task for us to get water before Senator Wamakko began distributing the commodity to the various communities in the metropolis and its environs .
” This singular act of has drastically reduced our hiccups and we are now getting potable water, courtesy of his magnanimity, ” they averred.
The Chairman of the Water Distribution Committee, Alhaji Anas Dan Nayaba stated that, the distribution was successfully conducted on Thursday at Maniru Road, Majema, Kofar Taramniyya, Kofar Atiku, Unguwar Mallamai, Gidan Haki, Assada and Masallacin Shehu.
According to Dan Nayaba, the distribution exercise will on Friday, April 16, 2021, be conducted in all Jumaat Mosques in the city.
He said that, in all the areas so far covered, the residents were trooping to get potable water, especially with the ongoing Ramadan fast.
“The residents of all the benefitting communities were full of praises for Wamakko and they could not hide their elation,” the Chairman, explained .
Meanwhile, the Sokoto State Commissioner for Water Resources, Hon. Umar Bature describes the allegations of water scarcity as a lie, baseless, and handwork of mischief-makers.
The Commissioner was responding to allegations of mismanagement of resources and the government’s inability to put an end to the lingering water supply problem in Sokoto metropolis.
Umar Bature said the sale of the ductile iron pipes followed a due process which he showed all the necessary paperwork to the press.
He added that water scarcity is connected with the mabera stormwater work project by NEWMAP and Waziri Abbas dualization Project, destroying some underground water pipes.
Umar Bature noted that areas within that axis are the only ones affected due to damages. He orders the state water board to restored water to those affected areas with immediate effect.
The commissioner frowned at how which the opposition play politics with the issue of water, stressing that whenever there is a stable water supply, nobody commends the government.
He cautioned those sponsored by opposition politicians to discredit his ministry to desist, noting that if he started exposing the previous administration’s corruption in the water sector, they have to battle it off with the state’s people.
The commissioner apologizes to the people of the areas affected by the scarcity stressing that he has ordered the association of Tanker drivers to distribute water free of charge to the area.
