The Lagos State Government has raised a serious health alarm over water contamination in the Lekki axis, warning that residents who rely on boreholes for water may be consuming faecal-contaminated water.
Speaking at a recent stakeholders’ meeting, the Permanent Secretary of the Office of Drainage Services and Water Resources, Mahmood Adegbite, said the current state of borehole water in the Lekki area is alarming due to the lack of proper wastewater treatment systems in the region.
“Everyone digging boreholes within the Lekki axis is probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water’,” Adegbite stated bluntly. He stressed that the treatment of wastewater is essential to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases, assuring that the government has plans in place to address the situation.
According to him, the untreated waste seeping into the groundwater is likely contaminating boreholes across the area, exposing residents to serious health risks. He said proper treatment of waste would “eradicate any form of disease that might result as a result of non-treatment of our waste.”
On the broader issue of urban flooding, Adegbite admitted the state still has a long way to go despite heavy investment. “Yesterday, it rained heavily, which is unusual because this is supposed to be August break. However, we started having it because of a lot of complex issues,” he said.
“Despite the fact that we have committed so much, we still need to do a lot more in that space,” he added, referring to the state’s flood mitigation efforts.
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