Hammed Shittu in Ilorin 

Worried by the incidence of water-borne diseases in Kwara State, a non-governmental organisation, Abubakar Bukola Saraki Foundation (ABS) has trained  25 plumbing technicians that would be repairing all damages boreholes and water wells across the 16 local government councils areas of the state.

Already, the foundation has equipped the technicians with modern day tools and equipment that would ease their  work so as to bring new lease of life to the rural communities in the state.

Speaking at  a ceremony to unveil the  plumbing technicians and their tools in Ilorin over the weekend, the ABS Foundation regional director, Mallam Musa Aliyu said that the technicians were trained for three weeks on how to carry out their assignment for the overall benefits of the people in  the state.

Aliyu who tagged  the 25 technicians as “Water Champions” said: “These 25 individuals, one from each local government area in Kwara State, will serve as skilled representatives, ready to support their communities with real solutions.”

He added: “The training of the affected technicians is to ensure access to safe, potable water for rural communities by strengthening local capacity in water quality management, foster community engagement and self-reliance, with trainees serving as borehole technicians and first responders in their respective communities.

“And empower communities with technical know-how and problem-solving skills needed to maintain important water infrastructure.

“Today, over 120 million Nigerians rely on boreholes as a primary source of water. 

“This dependence becomes a serious vulnerability when these systems fail, especially in rural areas where alternative sources are limited or unsafe.

“With this project, we aim not only to reduce the incidence of water-borne diseases but to build a network of trained “Water Champions”.

Also speaking, ABS Foundation Senior Programme Manager, Mr. Olanrewaju Lawal, said the project will not only guarantee access to potable water across Kwara communities, but also create employment opportunities.

He said:”This is just the pilot phase. Our plan is to scale up the project in the next phase. 

“I must also mention that our trainees are ABS ambassadors. They’re trained and equipped to go back to their various locations and also impact others with their training experience.”

In her remarks, one of the  technicians and team lead, Halirat Bake from Kaiama LGA, who was full of appreciation to the foundation, said the training, if paid for, would have cost the participants more than they could afford.

She added that the kits have also solved another major challenge they would have encountered, considering its financial worth if they were to procure them personally.

Meanwhile,  the  foundation has said that it   would not be  deterred by any antic, intrigue, or mischief from an individual, organisation, or corporate body in its efforts to advance the socio-economic well being of the rural communities of  Kwara State.

The foundation, however said that, it  will continue to think out of the box and come out with initiatives that can help us serve the people and their communities better.

A statement issued in Ilorin on Sunday  signed by the Foundation’s Director, Dr. Audu Musa Idowu against the backdrop of the vituperations of the state government on the recent foundation’s unveiling of 25 plumbing  technicians and tools  to repair damaged boreholes and well waters across the 16 local government councils areas of the state, the foundation said that, “The idea of training and equipping water champions to help in the repair, maintenance, and installation of boreholes came up after we received several written requests from various community development associations about the need to repair, rehabilitate, and replace boreholes serving the people’s water needs.”

The state Commissioner for Water  Water Resources, Hon. Usman Yunusa Lade in a statement over the weekend warned residents against tampering with any state owned water facilities.

He also stated: “Anyone who tampers with the state-owned water facilities without an approval from the designated authority will be dealt with according to law.”

However, ABS Foundation in a statement said: “While the commissioner has not defined what constitutes “tampering with state water facilities and also failed to clarify if repair of moribund, disused, and non-functional boreholes based on requests from affected communities, also constitutes “tampering with the water facilities.”

“We believe the statement by Mr. Lade was targeted at the recent initiative of the ABSF Foundation in which we just completed the training and equipping of 25 youths across the state with tools to enable them continuously and seamlessly repair boreholes and maintain water system across the state.

“We believe the Kwara State Government made the statement to halt and frustrate the foundation’s initiative to create Water Champions across various communities’.

The statement noted that, “The water champions have acquired skills and equipment during their sponsored training that they can deploy in helping various communities that face problems of water supply due to the poor maintenance of boreholes.”

 “The repair of boreholes by these water champions is therefore no false promise. It is a reality that the people have found extremely useful.

“The idea of training and equipping water champions to help in the repair, maintenance, and installation of boreholes came up after we received several written requests from various community development associations about the need to repair, rehabilitate, and replace boreholes serving the people’s water needs.”

It stated further that, ‘The training of the water champions is therefore an initiative that is a direct response to the wishes of the people. 

“It should also be noted that the people from the communities have been responding positively by sending letters of gratitude to the Foundation based on the positive interventions of the Water Champions in repairing boreholes in the communities.

“Again, we would like to put it on record that the successful training of the Water Champions is also serving the additional purpose of employing the beneficiaries. 

“With the newly acquired skill and equipment, the Water Champions can now earn a legitimate income while providing quality service to the people. 

“Thus, it is a surprise that instead of looking at the employment, health, and social service benefits of this initiative by the ABSF, the state government is plotting to sabotage it.

“The Foundation would like to put it on record that it is purely a philanthropic and community development-based organisation and has no link with politics, even though its Founder, is a politician.

 “The foundation has no link with politics and therefore takes objection to the part of the commissioner’s statement in which he insinuated that “some people, believed to be politically inclined and seeking to gain unnecessary political attention, are going round Ilorin Metropolis deceiving residents with false promises to repair faulty water facilities”.

‘The Foundation would like to advise the government of Kwara State not to frustrate a clear community development initiative with dirty politics. 

‘The ABS Foundation does not want to be dragged into partisan politics. Rather, it has since its foundation been making solid contributions in various spheres of life towards improving the standard of living of the people. 

‘Its initiatives, like the ones embarked upon by other similar not-for-profit organisations, have been making positive impacts.”

The statement  pointed out that, “Also, the ABS Foundation would like to make it clear that it will continue to serve the people, particularly those in the communities, and will not be deterred by any antic, intrigue, or mischief from an individual, organization, or corporate body.”

“We therefore will continue to think out of the box and come out with initiatives that can help us serve the people and their communities better.”

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