• Most labels on sachet, bottled water fraudulent – Nutritionist
• We’re already supplying potable water to parts of Lagos Island – LWC
For ages, many parts of Lagos Island have lacked access to potable water in spite of being surrounded by the sea and the lagoon. Manufacturers of myriads of sachet and bottled water are said to be feasting on this by flooding the area with their products. Tanker drivers whose source of water and hygiene of their tanks cannot be ascertained are also not left out. They are all ‘cashing out’ on the communities where clean water is gold. Experts are of the view that water sold in the area should frequently be subjected to tests to save the people from being exposed to needless health crises, INNOCENT DURU reports.
Bassey, a resident of Lagos Island has a challenge getting clean water from his borehole. The water from the borehole, like many others in the area, contains large quantity of iron. He cannot use it in its natural form for any of his domestic needs.
After some time of growing grey hair over the challenge, he devised a means to get around the problem.
Explaining the strategy that he adopted, Bassey said: “I have what I call a ground tank. I pump water into a ground tank and leave it for a day for it to settle.
“When it settles, I will pump it into the tank at the top. With that, I would have clean water.
“With that system in place, I have been able to live in the place for about eight years without having challenges with water.”
Good as his strategy appears, Bassey can only use the water to cook. “I can’t drink it,” he said. “We take bottled water in the house to avoid water borne diseases.”
But the bottled water brand that Bassey prides to be very safe may not be safe after all. A water facility operated by a woman suspected to be an agent of the manufacturer of the bottled water was recently found to be adulterating the product.
She was said to be refilling dispenser bottles of the product with content from public sources.
Lagos State officials who visited the facility on inspection mission discovered that there was no proper storage system for the water, adding that the products were also displayed outside in an unfavourable condition.
Many of such adulterated packaged water are feared to have found their ways to the Island where clean water is a great treasure.
“We really have a huge problem with clean water. At times, some water may be clean but it would not be drinkable. So, bottled water is what we consider as truly drinkable here,” Lizzy, another resident said.
“We take bottled water in my house to stay away from water borne diseases, but the truth is that you don’t know how good the so-called bottled water is.
“It is just that you at least have some hope that it is better than consuming the confirmed polluted groundwater.”
Asked if she fears some top brands of bottled water could be adulterated, Lizzy said: “Nothing is impossible in Nigeria, especially here in Lagos. One cannot vouch for all these things they sell all over the place as safe bottled water.
“It is just that many people believe that bottled water is rarely adulterated unlike pure water that anyone can do at the back of his house.
“That is why you find that the bottle water business is thriving here. Some people buy tens of packs to keep in their houses because the water they have in their houses is not drinkable.
“Some are not even fit for cooking. They are only good for flushing the toilet and for some other uses.”
Mike Owhoko, publisher of Media Issues, an online newspaper, in a recent write up, raised the alarm about how Lekki and its environs have been flooded with myriads of bottled and sachet water, some of which he said have predisposed the people to diseases.
His words: “Lekki residents are exposed to water-related diseases engendered by sub-standard and unregulated sources of water supply.
“Increasing cases of dysentery and diarrhoea-induced pathogenic bacteria infections have sparked concerns on public health in the area.
“By Lekki, I mean the geographical area straddling between Tollgate and Victoria Garden City (VGC).
“Despite its aquatic location bordered by the sea and the lagoon, clean water is hard to find due to its peculiar topography.”
Regrettably, Owhoko said, “This has encouraged all manner of water merchants, using boreholes, tanker trucks and bottled water with questionable hygiene conditions lacking the capacity to pass purity test, to flood the area with their products.
“Ajah, an area adjacent to Lekki, has a good water table with a thick protective layer.
“This has led to the emergence of water vendors who use trucks/tanks to deliver and sell water to Lekki residents.
“Notwithstanding, there are concerns about hygiene.
“These tanker trucks are seldom washed and are prone to contamination. Some of these trucks have been in operation for over 10 years, yet operators do not deem it fit to wash them, thereby exposing residents to infections.
“Besides, in the course of dispensing water, tanker trucks pollute the environment through the generation of noise and carbon monoxide, causing health hazards.
“This leaves Lekki residents helpless, confining them to bottled water, which they believe are reliable. But they are wrong!
“The risk of contamination in bottled and sachet water is also high due to adulteration and imitation fueled by greed.”
Continuing, he said: “There are so many bottled water brands in circulation, all contending to capture the Lekki market share. “Those who believe their brands lack the capacity to compete resort to producing counterfeit by faking notable brands already enjoying market patronage. That is why at party venues in Lekki, empty bottles of consumed water of big brands are quickly taken away by quacks for recycle.
“Despite a lack of full-proof purity, Lekki residents believe they are better off with bottled water than drinking directly from boreholes and tanker trucks. This desperation to consume any water in bottle has exposed residents to unprepared risk.
In what appears to be a corroboration of Owhoko’s remarks, Nollywood actor, Uti Nwachukwu, not too long ago took to his social media handle to narrate his ordeal after consuming some bottled water.
Uti said he started stooling after consuming the water and blamed his incessant stooling on the amount of chemical contained in the table water.
Writing on his twitter handle, the actor said: “Dear bottled water companies, please what have you started adding to your water? If I wanted to projectile poop six-seven times a day, I’d have bought slimming tea!
“What’s all this? It can’t be only me! And it’s the biggest brands! Two of them now! Fix it so that I don’t call your names!
“I knew there was a problem when I was pooping steady and it was smelling of chemicals, like sanitizer, or alum or something! I stopped the first one and the stooling ceased.
“Took the second one and there were no issues. I bought a small bottle and it was worse! This one came with abdominal discomfort, acid reflux, and yes, watery stool with that same chemical/alum aroma.
“So now, I can only vouch for one brand that’s currently safe to consume. Who checks the standards of these things we put in our bodies?
“Reputable brands like these are causing harm! Who even knows the effects on our organs? I’m tired!”
Some respondents to his tweet are of the opinion that the actor might have taken adulterated bottled water.
“Maybe one … has started making the adulterated version. Who knows,” a Nairaland user who identified himself as SportsHD said.
Our reporter, who spent some time in a hotel at Jakande area, said apart from drinking purpose, he was compelled to get a bottled water pack to brush his mouth because he couldn’t manage the water in the hotel.
He said: “When I entered the hotel, I went to use the restroom. I was shocked at what I saw. The water in the toilet was brownish and I thought someone used it and did not flush.
“I decided to flush it, but what came out was not different from what I thought was urine.
“It was at that time that it dawned on me that that could be the nature of the water in the environment.
“I was more dazed when I tried to brush and bathe. The water that came from the tap was smelly and I quickly turned off the tap.
“I rushed to the reception to complain but all that the front desk person could do was to apologise. She said it was not their fault that that is how their water is.
“I had to ask them to get me better water to bathe because there was no way I could have bathed with the smelly water.
“To save himself from a health crisis, I went to buy a pack of bottled water. It was brisk business in the area. Everybody in the hotel was going to get bottled water even for brushing.
“Nobody cared about the brand as long as it was bottled. The other alternatives you have are to either buy pure water or get a keg to buy from the community.”
Banana Island is the least place one would expect to hear that unsafe water is obtainable. This is owing to the class of people residing in the neighbourhood. But there, the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission (LSWRC), also recently sealed the Banana Island Property Owners Resident Association (BIPORAL) Water Treatment Plant for failing to meet the required safety and quality standards.
Tests conducted by the LSWRC revealed that the water quality of the plant was unsafe for consumption and required improved treatment.
There are feelings that water could easily have been packaged by any manufacturer for the public on mere assumption that water from such an environment will always be hygienic.
Tanker driver, sachet water merchants also ‘cashing out’
Aside from bottled water manufacturers, sachet water producers and people vending water with tankers are also having a good share of business in the area.
James, a resident of First Gate area of Jakande, said he buys water from water tankers but the hygiene and quality of the water cannot be ascertained.
“We don’t have good water at all. Our water is not drinkable. We don’t even use it to cook,” James began the chat with our correspondent on note of lamentation.
“We can only use it to wash and flush the toilet. The water ordinarily stains the toilet but we always use strong toilet soaps to keep it clean. We can’t use it to wash white clothes,” he added.
Asked where he gets water to attend to other needs, James said: “We buy water from vendors most often. They hawk the water in tanks. That is the kind of water we use to cook. A Jerry can of 25 litres is N200.
“I have a big drum that I fill with water worth N2,000. I do this every week. Our water here in Jakande, as bad as it is, is far better than what some people have in their areas. “The water in some communities is so bad that even if you put alum in it, the quality will not improve.”
Godonu, a resident of Oke Ira, told our correspondent that he uses pure water to cook because the water around him is smelly.
“The water smells, and many atimes, I buy sachet water to cook. If there is no money to buy sachet water, we would go to Oke Ira Nla to buy water.
“We always manage the water we buy for cooking and drinking while we use the smelly one for bathing.
“We don’t feel comfortable using such water to bathe, but since we don’t have an alternative, we have to manage what is available.
“We always endure the foul smell.”
Godonu’s neigbour, Elizabeth, spoke of how the polluted water they were using before caused the children to have rashes.
“The place we were fetching water from before has spoilt. The water was always brown and also causing rashes for the children.
“If you saw the bodies of our children before now, you would wonder where they came about rashes. The water was responsible for it.
“The water that we are using now is clean but it is smelly. We only use it to bathe.
“Before we use the water to bathe, we would fetch it into a container for some time for fresh air to blow the horrible smell away. You just have to do that if you want to at least manage to enjoy your bath.
“Some people are still complaining that this present water is causing itching for them. But the complaints are not widespread like when we were using the other water.”
Even though the present water is clean, Elizabeth said, they cannot use it to cook. “No, we don’t. It is not good to use smelly water to cook what one eats.
“We always cross to the other side of the road to buy the water that we drink.
“A regular big plastic paint costs N100. I spend an average of N300 on water every day. This is really affecting me financially because in a month, I spend nothing less than N10,000 to buy just water. How much do I make from my petty business in a month?
“If I don’t buy the water to attend to domestic needs, it will have ripple effects on me and the family, and this includes health issues that N10,000 may not be able to take care of.”
Another resident, who gave her name simply as Lydia, said she had rashes all over her body when she newly arrived in the area.
She said: “My body reacted negatively to the water. In fact, I never knew that the water in this area is terribly bad until I came here.
“I resorted to using pure water but the truth is that you cannot ascertain if the water is free of contamination or not. You only use it because they say it is pure water and truly it does not have colour, and does not smell like the ground water.
“Another way out when there is no money to spend on pure water is to buy water in gallons.”
Writing on Quora, an online platform, a dietician and nutritionist, Muhammad Haseeb, said tanker water may be susceptible to contamination from various sources. If the water source or the tanker itself is contaminated, it can introduce harmful microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses or parasites into the hospital’s water supply. These contaminants can cause water borne diseases and infections, particularly in immune-compromised patients.
H added: “Tanker water may carry water borne diseases such as cholera, dysentery, typhoid or hepatitis A. These diseases can spread rapidly within a hospital setting, especially if the water is used for drinking, hand hygiene or medical procedures.
“Patients, staff and visitors with weakened immune systems are particularly vulnerable to such infections.
“Tanker water quality may also be compromised by chemical contaminants. Industrial pollutants, pesticides, heavy metals or disinfection byproducts can find their way into the water supply.
“Prolonged exposure to these chemicals can lead to various health problems, including gastrointestinal issues, liver or kidney damage, neurological disorders, or even an increased risk of cancer.”
If inadequately disinfected, the nutritionist said, “tanker water might not undergo adequate disinfection processes compared to the water supplied through a municipal system.
“Insufficient disinfection can lead to the survival of pathogens in the water, increasing the risk of infectious diseases.
“Hospitals require a high level of water quality and disinfection to maintain a safe environment for patients, staff and medical procedures.
“The quality of tanker water may vary depending on the source, transportation and storage conditions.
“Lack of control over the water supply can result in inconsistent quality, making it difficult to ensure reliable and safe water for hospital operations.
“This inconsistency can impact patient care, hygiene practices, and medical equipment maintenance.”
Another nutritionist, Seun Obembe, says relevant government agencies need to conduct regular tests on packaged water “because there is what we call alkaline water and acid water.
“Most of the water labels are just information fraud. I am in Kaduna right now and most of the water I have tested here are apologies.
“That is why there is an epidemic of typhoid and ulcer. The government should test this water and do the right thing.
“Let’s check it clinically. What is chlorine overdose, because they use chlorine inside the water?
“The recommended allowance for water in a day is two litres. How many sachets produce two litres? And then check the content of chlorine in them. That one is detrimental to health.
“All these things have to be regulated. The government needs to do more work. They should encourage more scientists.
“They should bring more dieticians and nutritionists on board. It is when there is an outbreak that they will start looking for researchers to bring out papers.”
On the use of polluted water by the people, Obembe said: “When you say it is contaminated water, then it is detrimental to the health of the users. Even when you use it to bathe, the pores on the skin will definitely open and allow bacteria to go into the body.
“People who are obese are prone to sickness because all these microorganisms hide inside them. So when there are issues in the body, all those pathogens that have been hiding inside the body will come out to strike.
We’re already supplying water to parts of Island – LWC
Regional Business Manager of the Lagos State Water Corporation (LWC), South South Lagos, Mrs Adewumi Folake, said the corporation was working on making clean water available on the Island.
She said: “Presently, water is getting to Adeniji, Idumagbo, and Iduganran. We are working towards building up our pressure so that the supply will get to many more places on the Island.
“LWC is working towards that. We have a pipeline network on the Island.
“Our water supply is coming from the Mainland. The Ajiyan and Iju water works are supplying the Island. We are sure that the challenge of clean water will soon come to an end when we complete our works.
Corroborating Mrs Adewumi’s remarks, the Public Relations Officer of LWC, Mrs Kehinde Fashola, said residents of Island and Lagos in general should rest assured that there would be abundant water supply in the state.
“The present MD is doing what one can imagine. He is working towards installing water in every household in Lagos State.
“A lot of rehabilitation is already going on at our mini and macro water works. All hands are on deck to make sure every household has water in Lagos.