Residents of Eka Kuso in Kpada District of the Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara State have narrated how they fetch and drink from dirty streams.
The residents during a visit by an anti-corruption civil society organisation, Elites Network for Sustainable Development (ENetSuD) said they have been excluded from water supply for years, forcing them to resort to fetching untreated water from streams around.
A video obtained by SaharaReporters shows the various areas where residents fetch water from are dirty, bushy and mashy.
“We suffer a lot when it comes to getting water, especially during harmattan. We don’t use to feel okay during that time, right from morning, around six o’clock, they will fetch water and wait till like ten o’clock so it can settle down,” a villager was heard saying.
“We want help wholeheartedly, we are really suffering.”
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On July 22, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reported 526 deaths from cholera while there are 22,130 suspected cases in 2021 alone.
The primary cause of cholera is the ingestion of contaminated food and water, majorly fuelled by the lack of water and sanitation hygiene (WASH) infrastructures.
Water Aid says 60 million people in Nigeria lack access to clean water. That is one in every three people.
