From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
In September last year, no fewer than 11 persons died of cholera in Ndibokote village, Ezza-Inyimegu in Agbaja Autonomous Community, Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
A member of the community, Stephen Nwankpuma, attributed the deaths to the burial of a woman where people ate food with beef that wasn’t prepared in a hygienic way.
He said: “Those who went to the burial ate a cow that was killed and prepared in a very dirty environment. The community is located in the remotest part of the state. In fact, it shares a boundary with Benue State.
“There is no good source of water in the area. The only borehole in the area is no longer functional. The only source of water there now is a pond or stream and it is very dirty.
“The situation is worsened by the heavy rain falling at this period which flowed into the stream, carrying all the waste with it and probably contaminating the pond.”
That is the lot of several communities in the state. Though there had not been any recent cases of cholera in Ndeguazu Umuoghara, Ezza North Local Government Area, the situation in the community is heartrending. The area is backward in all ramifications, despite its nearness to the local government headquarters, Ebiaji and Abakaliki, the state capital.
The community is less than 20 minutes’ drive from Abakaliki metropolis and five minutes to the headquarters of Ezza North Local government.
The people of the community have, from inception, been without electricity, water, road and other social amenities. Ndeguazu Umuoghara has been completely off the development plans of the local government. In addition, indigenes of the area have never held government positions, be it at the highest or lowest level that could attract development to them.
Saturday Sun learnt that the only position the community had produced was the Publicity Secretary of All Progressives Congress (APC), Ebonyi Central zone, held by one Emeka Nwonu who recently was appointed the Executive Secretary, Local Government Staff Pensions Board in the state.
Investigation showed that potable water is the most pressing need of the community. Presently, residents drink with animals in a common pond owing to lack of water. This exposes them to all manner of health hazards.
Actually, the people have a hand-pumped borehole, the only borehole in the community which they levied themselves and constructed. But the borehole does not pump water as required, thereby making them to resort to a pond known as Okpuru Iyionu. The pond, with its yellowish water content, currently serves as the major source of water in the community. The stagnant water is located on a track road leading into the area.
Animals reared by the residents, especially cows, share the pond with them. Footsteps of the cows were all over the pond when our correspondent visited there. The animals usually go there to drink water when they are thirsty. And they are seen around there every time. In fact, the cows came there, drank water and left, while Saturday Sun reporter was speaking to some residents.
“We have no choice because we don’t have water except this pond. The cows always drink from the pond,. You are seeing footprints of animals around the pond. They’re from the cows, but what can we do? This is why I said we have no choice,” 23-year-old Adaeze Nworie, lamented.
Nworie expressed fear that the pond will soon dry up at the peak of the dry season as usual, bemoaning that when that happens, there would be no source of water in the community
The young lady said: “You can imagine what will be our condition. So, we are severely challenged. We need serious help but we have nobody to help us.
“We have suffered a lot because of water. It has been very long we started suffering this water problem. This pond you see that many of us drink from, animals, including cows drink from it. Very soon, you will see cow that will come to drink from it as you are here speaking with us.
“All these cows you see around this pond, they do come here to drink water. You can see their footsteps within this area. So, this is our problem but God has been protecting us because He knows that we don’t have a helper. There’s no one who can come to our aid.”
The lady explained that electricity was also a big problem in the community. She revealed that since she was born, there has not been electricity in the area.
She said that the residents started having hope of getting light eight years ago when electricity poles were mounted on the road to the community but that their hopes were dashed as the poles have remained that way without any electricity cables crossing the poles.
While speaking with Adaeze, two children were seen fetching water with gallons from the pond.
One of them was 13-year-old Precious Nwakpa. She also said that it was her family’s only source of water for drinking and domestics uses.
“We use this water to cook. Some people, including myself drink it because we don’t have any other source of water. We have only one borehole in the entire community and people usually crowd it while struggling to fetch water.
“You will pass through a series of problems before you will fetch water from the borehole; that’s why we always come to the Iyionu pond to fetch water for our domestic use without any stress,” Nwakpa said.
An childless widow who is more than 100 years old, and has no roof over her head, Madam Bridget Nweke told Saturday Sun that she has been drinking water from the pond for more than 10 years since she returned to her father’s house in the community. She was evicted from her late husband’s compound as a result of lack of child in the marriage.
She stated that she used to fetch the water by herself when she returned to the community but now, she no longer goes to far distances as a result of her age. So, it is children within the area that normally fetch the water for her.
Nweke opined that she has never fallen ill since she started drinking the Okpuru Iyionu pond and thanked God for keeping her.
“My son, I have been drinking this Okpuru Iyionu water. I drink it, use it to cook by myself and use it to wash things by myself. You saw when I was washing the mortar that I used when you came into this my hut where I cook, sleep and stay. I have no house as you can see,” she stated.
One of the leaders of the community, Emeka Mgbada described the community as very backward in all areas.
Highlighting their plight, he called on government to appoint sons and daughters of the area into positions where they could be able to change the situation in the community if government would not solve the problems.
“Before I was born, the situation had gone wrong like this. Our people have been in this terrible situation like this. We never had electricity before, we never had anybody in government. So, it’s been long from over the years.
“This particular place of Azu-Ose, Ndeguazu ward is very much backward in all ramifications. We don’t have people in government who can assist us. We are financially incapacitated; we cannot do anything.
“We lack government presence entirely in this area; no electricity even when we are close to the local government headquarters and the town. We are seriously in trouble in this area and that is why we are calling on government to remember us by giving some of us positions with which we can attract social amenities to this place and assist people who need help,” Mgbada stated.
Similarly, a public affairs commentator who is conversant with the area, Polycarp Obinna Alegu said in the state, Ezza North remains the most underdeveloped. He accused politicians in the local government of misplacement of priority and not doing much for the people in the hinterlands.
He lamented that during the Christmas and New Year celebrations, the politicians killed cows for their people and provided drinks in excess for them instead of using the monies to sink boreholes in the grassroots to solve the acute water problem in the local government.
His words: “During the Yuletide weeks ago, some politicians in Ezza North killed cows in their wards and made drinks excessive for their people. Stakeholders gathered and shared the cow meat as well as drank to satisfaction..
“Imagine such a show of shame! How can a politician without a single borehole or culvert to his credit spend such huge sum on nonsense when there are people who drink bad water from the pond? When there are indigent constituents dying of hunger and lack? Money spent on the drinks and cows could have sunk at least one borehole for the people or even paid WAEC fees for indigent students.
“In fact, people are really suffering at the hinterlands and our leaders are not bothered. Always try to reach out to those dying of hunger at the remote areas. I will always help out to identify them when needed.
“Local governments were created to bring government closer to the local people such that they would have access to social amenities. Why should people be drinking from a pond when we have a council chairman and ward councillor representing the area?
“While the state or federal government put urban areas in order, it is the responsibility of the local government to put the rural areas in order. Navigating into the hinterlands and sinking boreholes as well as providing other social needs for the local people should be the priority of the local government.
“I want you to know that there are people in Ezza North who are still drinking water from the pond. They’ve never seen any borehole with their eyes not to talk of sinking it in their area. No road not to talk of electricity or any other social amenity.
“Everything mustn’t be done by federal or state government. The needs of the local people should always be tackled by the leaders at the grassroots or local level.”