On waste water treatment, everyone digging borehole within the Lekki axis is probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water
A Lagos State government official has issued a blunt warning that residents across the Lekki axis who are drilling boreholes for personal water supply may be consuming dangerously contaminated water. Mahmood Adegbite, Permanent Secretary of the Office of Drainage Services and Water Resources, described the locally sourced groundwater as “shit water” during a recent stakeholders’ meeting.
Adegbite emphasised the public health risks posed by untreated borehole water in flood-prone Lekki, noting that waste water infiltration contaminates underground aquifers. “On waste water treatment… I will say that everyone digging borehole within the Lekki axis is probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water’,” he said.
He further outlined government plans to implement comprehensive waste water treatment systems across the area. “However, if we are able to treat all the waste water within this axis which we have plans for, we should be able to also eradicate any form of disease that might result as a result of non‑treatment of our waste.”
Adegbite also addressed flooding issues, noting unexpected heavy rainfall. “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… despite the fact that we have committed so much, however, we still need a lot to do in that space.”