By Our Correspondent
The Anambra State House of Assembly has called on Governor Chukwuma Soludo to urgently restore public water supply in major urban centres across the state, urging him to rehabilitate non-functional urban water schemes.
The lawmakers also called for a comprehensive audit of the facilities to establish why several of them had stopped functioning or were operating below capacity despite substantial investments by the state government.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Hon. Golden Iloh and supported by 19 other lawmakers, expressing concern over the deteriorating state of public water supply in major urban centres in the state.
The House, presided over by its Speaker, Rt. Hon. Somtochukwu Nkem Udeze, urged Soludo to direct the Commissioner for Power and the Managing Director of the Anambra State Urban Water Assets Holding Corporation to undertake a comprehensive assessment of all urban water schemes.
The assessment, according to the lawmakers, should identify the reasons for the failure of the facilities and provide a clear roadmap for their restoration to full operation.
The House expressed concern that several water schemes established and commissioned by the Soludo administration in Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi and Ekwulobia were either completely non-functional or operating significantly below their installed capacities.
It noted that the situation had forced residents of the affected urban communities to depend largely on private water tankers, commercial boreholes and other alternative sources, often at considerable financial cost.
The lawmakers warned that the absence of reliable public water supply could compel residents to patronise unsafe water sources, thereby exposing them to waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid.
They further observed that the situation placed additional financial pressure on low- and middle-income households, which have to spend extra money to meet their daily water needs.
The House stressed that access to safe and affordable water was fundamental to public health, economic activities and the general welfare of the people.
It also called for a technical and operational audit of the existing water schemes, covering their infrastructure, equipment, power requirements, distribution networks and management systems.
The lawmakers said the exercise would help determine the level of intervention required to restore the facilities and ensure their sustainable operation.
They expressed confidence that the governor’s intervention would restore public water supply to the affected urban communities and improve access to one of the basic necessities of life for Ndi Anambra.
