Ojirami Dam, A Case of “Thirst In the Midst of Plenty!”

For many citizens of the developed world, it is near impossible to imagine life without accessible clean water. Because of this they take activities like washing their bodies and having running clean water in their homes, utilizing indoor plumbing, cooking and drinking clean water, etc, for granted. Yet, for 2.2 billion people worldwide, a number that also includes countless people in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria, this is the only reality they know.

In this report obtained for Akoko Edo community newspaper, our editor Albert Afeso Akanbi examines the situation with the Ojirami Dam, one of the dams in the federation, located in Akoko-Edo LGA of Edo State.

For many of us, the 2006 Nigerian population census in which we learnt that there are over 400, 000 people living in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, an area covering 1,371 km², is merely a confirmation of what we already know.

Might I add that the local government is said to be the oldest and perhaps largest of Nigeria’s 774 LGAs. It has produced some of the brightest minds, cut across all industries, in Nigeria today; now, add that to the numerous mineral resources God has blessed the area with, from marble in Ikpeshi, gold in Atte, Ososo and Dagbala, to precious stones in Ibillo, granite in Ikpeshi, gravel in Igarra, and now white stone in Eshawa and you’d be right to conclude that with quality representation, the LGA should be a beacon of light and hope among others, and that it should not be mentioned anywhere near places that are rife with abandoned projects which are often used as conduit pipes for corruptly syphoning billions of government money into private pockets.

In demonstration of his good intentions, Governor Godwin Obaseki made some promises to the people of the area during the 2020 electioneering campaigns, and recently, in a move that suggests it may not be business as usual, he appointed two sons of the area as commissioners – a move that was applauded by all.

However, some analysts insist that the story of Ojirami Dam has proven that the last five years of this administration have not been able to blur the visible signs of corruption, infrastructural decay and a gross lack of maintainance culture in the LGA, and if left unattended, eight years of Obaseki might just end up meaning little or nothing to the people of the area.

Let us pause for a moment and reflect a little more about the Ojirami dam; that gigantic water supply plant built by the late Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia’s government and commissioned by Nigeria’s military leader at the time, General Yakubu Gowon, in 1974.

That year, the freshly minted dam with over 45 dedicated and adequately renumerated staff workforce, well equipped water treatment, high-lift plant and solid infrastructure that was the attraction of tourists, had the capacity to, and indeed began to supply residents in Igarra and the entire LGA, including parts of Owan East, Owan West and Etsako LGAs with fresh portable water and great hopes that the dam had put an end to the age long water need of the people of the region.

From Ikao, Ojirami Petesi (where the dam is domiciled), Ojirami Afekunu, Dagbala, to Uneme-Erhunrun, Akuku, Enwan, Igarra, Okpe, Ugboshi, Okpella in Etsako East LGA, to Ososo, just name it, kids could switch on the tap and fresh water would ooze from the hose.

That was then…sadly, today, all that is but a distant dream as residents, even in the home of the dam itself, Ojirami, go about every day in search of clean potable water. The lucky communities depend on few residents who own bore holes within thier community for their water needs. The not too lucky ones like Akuku and Eshawa, depend on numerous promises from politicians, and on streams in the area, a thing that can lead to water borne illnesses.

In spite of past efforts to revamp the plant, beside the obsolete, dilapidated and rusty equipment that litter the premises of the dam today, one of the major problem hampering the supply of water besides lack of electricity, is the lack of procurement of the much needed water treatment chemicals for the plants such as hydrated lime, alum and chlorine; and there are allegations that monies meant for that purpose, often find thier way into private bank accounts.

I visited and sat with the remaining staff still working at the dam as of 2021, and all they had left was nostalgic feelings about the good old days.

Despite praising Governor Obaseki’s prompt payment of salaries, they bemoaned the decay and insisted that the staff quarters is in shambles, that the last time the dam was dredged was 40 years ago, a thing that has led to flooding of the communities around it during rains (recall how in the 1980s, flood from the dam swept away almost half of Akuku community). We also found that the usual 5-yearly maintainance of the dam has long been abandoned; yet the population that rely on the dam for thier water need keep increasing by the year. Some of the staff members showed me where they sleep at night and all I could do was shake my head in pity!

A recent report in the Leadership newspapers quoted the 7th National Assembly as releasing a whooping sum of N1. 5 billion through the Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC) for its resuscitation and procurement of chemical for the dam but sadly the amount, like many before it, was allegedly frittered away by corrupt officials in charge of the project…till today, no one has asked what happened to the money, yet Akoko-Edo constituencies, both at federal and state levels, continue to have representation.

The present administrative office meant for the remaining few staff is an abandoned three room guest house that sheltered the late Premier of the defunct Western region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and the late former governor of Bendel State, Prof. Ambrose Alli of blessed memory, when both of them visited at some point in our history.

I was informed that in the last 15 years the dam has not supplied one single drop of water to any community, and that all the generating power plants had broken down and that even when they were functional, the cost of fuelling them was unbearable.

Visit any community in Akoko-Edo LGA today, and you’ll see that as residents, it’s either you sunk your own borehole, dug your own well, or rely on streams in the area for your water needs.

The honourable member representting the area in the federal house has been quoted as attributing the collapse of the multi-billion naira dam to many years of corruption by both military and civilian governments and promising that the dam will be one of his key priorities when the 9th Assembly comes on board . The people are still awaiting the fulfilment of that promise. Electioneering campaigns would be upon us soon, will that promise take it’s place among others as being what it is; a PROMISE?
I want to commend Governor Godwin Obaseki for his stated commitment to tackle water challenges not only in Akoko-Edo LGA but in the entire Edo state, especially as he promised during the last electioneering campaign.
I want to urge him to ensure he makes good his promises not only because his time left in office is short, but especially because our people have suffered enough!

Our people deserve better, and l trust that the time remaining of his term as governor will be better for us in Akoko-Edo LGA as it will for the entire State…

Many can afford to take a glass of clean water anytime they want, yet they take it for granted that countless more cannot..And because of this, I’d like to also use this opportunity to remind our people that as long as we close our eyes, and choose not to ask what happened to all the money that has been sunk into that endless pit called Ojirami dam project, we will continue to carry that moral burden in our hearts, whether we know it or not, of how we have failed ourselves as a people!

Albert Afeso Akanbi is the editor, Akoko Edo community newspaper.