Mr Umar Bature, the immediate past Commissioner of Water Resources in Sokoto State, says current efforts to upgrade water supply facilities will end recurring scarcity of potable water in Sokoto metropolis.
Bature told the newsmen on Saturday in Sokoto that already 60 percent of the facilities had been upgraded to meet the water needs of the growing population.
He attributed the recurring scarcity to lack of planning, saying that although “the population was growing, designed plans were not strictly adhered to by successive governments.
” The capacity of the water board in Sokoto is still enough, the only thing is, we refused to take care of the machines.”
According to him, four out of the six machines at the water works had been refurbished and now activated to provide higher water output.
” We have restored capacity from zero to at least 60 percent as the main water intake; we have restored four out of six pumps, and efforts were on to fix the remaining two,” Bature said.
He explained that when he took over as commissioner, an action plan was designed to rejig water supply architecture in the state.
“The first of that action plan was to restore the capacity of machines, the second action plan was to improve on the distribution network and the third was to make sure we have enough storages.”
He added: “The water distribution network has been there since 1988, about 31 years now, because there is no expansion and pipelines did not reach some areas, that is why they do not have water.”
Bature listed the efforts made to tackle the perennial water shortage during dry season to include the repositioning pipelines to enhance pumping capacity.
He lauded Gov. Aminu Tambuwal for his commitment towards tackling the water problem in the state, noting that’s the governor was very supportive in whatever they tried to do.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that residents of Sokoto metropolis continuously face water scarcity, forcing them to buy from vendors who sell a jerry can at between N25 and N100.
The commencement of rain has however brought succour to the residents who now harvest rain water for their daily use.
