Good Water, Good Health

Neville Kikpoye-Jonathan

One of the major responsibilities of every government is to take measures that would promote the well-being of its citizens. In doing this, government has to regularly seek ways and means of improving its performance so as to ensure that its actions are commensurable with the desires and need of its people. No society is static; human societies are dynamic. Therefore, government has to match this dynamism through conscious efforts aimed at moving the society forward. And it is when government fails to perform this obligation that the people would be forced to complain.
A key area where government has always given much attention is the health sector, obviously because good health is a critical factor in the life of every human being. Good health promotes longevity, while poor health is one of the reasons for low life expectancy. Hence, the top priority accorded the health sector by the Rivers State Government cannot be said to be misplaced.
The State in the past one year, has dotted the landscape of Rivers State with over 150 health centre projects, with a view to bringing health care delivery services closer to the masses. Other aspects of health care delivery are also receiving government’s attention. And based on available evidence, it is projected that soon, Rivers people would have no need to travel abroad for specialist health care attention.
However, provision of potable water is another key area of ensuring good health of the citizenry. In Rivers State, there is no scarcity of water. There State is blessed with streams and rivers, and we do not have to dig too far to find water.
But a question that quickly comes to mind is: Is water from these soruces safe for drinking, especially when not boiled.? A confident answer lies in no, as water from streams and rivers get easily polluted with dirt as well as human and animal wastes. It is even more dangerous in an oil producing State like Rivers that flows with petroleum products.
Another issue that should be of serious concern to those who cherish good health is the location of boreholes. Many boreholes are located too close to septic tanks. The cleaning of many over-head water tanks is even carried out in an unhygienic manner as cleaners casually strip themselves naked to do the cleaning.
Unfortunately, water is sold to the public from these tanks. It would not therefore be incorrect to say that as people pay for water from these tanks, they are equally paying for diseases.
Meanwhile, rain water, to many people, appears to be a source of good drinking water, but certainly not in a State like Rivers where gas flaring releases dangerous substances into the atmosphere. It is against this backdrop that I call on the Rivers State Government to reinforce and sustain its good health programme for the citizenry with the provision of portable water.
It is true that the State government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a consortium of three firms for the design of water project for Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor. This is surely a large scale project. But smaller water projects could also be designed for our rural communities, where most of the people do not have access to safe drinking water. Some communities are lucky to have mono-pumps, but they have to contend with the problem of maintaining them. Today, there are many broken-down mono-pumps in most communities. Therefore, a system of maintenance of broken-down mono-pumps should be put in place by government, especially by the local governments in the State.
As we give further consideration to the issue of potable water for the people of Rivers State, we should look at what science tells us about good drinking water. It says that 75% of our body weight consists of water, and that we could live for only a few days without water. It must also be stated that as hunger stimulates the need for man to eat food, so does thirst cause man to want to drink. The thirst for water could be very strong, but not every water that appeals to the human eye is suitable for drinking.
Pure water which is a compound of hydrogen and oxygen is colourless, tasteless, and has no smell and should be free of any kind of contamination. This is the kind of water the people of Rivers State deserves from government. And I strong believe, the Amaechi-led government is up to the task.
Kikpoye-Jonathan is of the Rivers State Ministry of Information