VOICE AIR MEDIA News Update

A Civil Society Organisation (CSO), The Osun Masterminds, has expressed displeasure that no drop of water has come out of the boreholes the Osun State Government sunk while taps have not been installed at a lot of the locations and the contractors have not resurfaced since they left the site.

The group at its monthly State of the State address in Osogbo, on Monday, noted that it had warned the government against embarking on sinking a borehole in 332 wards to celebrate 100 days and advised Governor Ademola Adeleke, instead to channel its energy towards revitalising the moribund water supply schemes in the state.

The Executive Director of TOM, Prof Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, noted that the group had gone around to confirm the condition of the boreholes, saying that the majority of the boreholes are still not functional despite several press releases and interviews that the boreholes were now completed and in service.

“We visited several wards across the state and interacted with many locals in those areas visited. Our findings revealed that upon completion of most, if not all of the boreholes, they did not work beyond the day the installed pumping machines were tested.

“In some cases, no provision was made for electrical connection that will power the boreholes, while in some cases poor arrangements that cannot serve a long-term purpose were made. We also found that a lot of the boreholes had truly been completed way before the Holy month of Ramadan commenced, but are still not in service to this present day.

“We should cite some close examples, for the records. The Governor can even choose to commission an inquiry into the current state of the boreholes. We physically visited the boreholes in Ward 5 Olorunda LG, Wards 2, 6, and 14 of Osogbo Local Government, among many others across the state.

“The stories were the same all over the state. Boreholes were sunk and installed. The installations were tested, but since that day, more than 2 months ago, no drop of water has come out of the boreholes the Osun State Government spent hundreds of millions to construct. Taps have not even been installed at a lot of the locations and the contractors have not resurfaced since they left the site. We have pictorial evidence to back our claims.

We advise that the Osun State Government, through its relevant offices, get to action immediately, to ensure that the boreholes our state spent on, are made functional for the people of the state. They cannot just stand as decorations scattered around the corners of the state, they have to serve the purpose for which they were built,” he added.

The group also advised the government to ensure that in its drive to implement a local content policy in government procurement, it must not make the mistake of turning government projects into “jobs for the boys” that will end up badly executed and injurious to the finances of the state on the long run.

Projects yet to be commissioned—Adeleke’s spokesperson

But in a swift reaction, the governor’s spokesperson explained that though the project was awarded in compliance with due process, the project is successful on many ways.

He said: “In specific terms, the government dispels in strong terms insinuations in some partisan quarters that the borehole water project has failed. The project is successful in many ways as the government is in the process of purchasing generating sets to power them. Pending the completion of the powering process and the official commissioning, many communities are making use of the facilities to meet their water needs.

“A 30 local government survey plus the area office would show that contrary to reports, the water project has not failed and a check with the relevant government offices would have corrected the misinformation being peddled around. As of today, our people at the local level are enjoying these boreholes even before it was fully commissioned.

“If interested stakeholders are also conscious of the earlier announcement that full details of state income and expenditure will be unveiled at the Ipade Imole holding in late June, there won’t be any need to rush to judgement and consequent false assumptions and unfounded allegations of failed projects.”