Wednesday, March 5, 2008

The 156th reminder.... to the PERSON/S CONCERNED

Another waterless week goes by and hence these continued 'reminders'....

While we don't get any water, how is it that the many water kiosks, do? And what is the criteria for starting one? In an urban setting like the 'city' of Mombasa? Why is the Ministry and the many water 'bodies' responsible for providing this 'service' treating this major town (I won't call it a city anymore as that would mean that ALL services would be provided, promptly, including water to the residents), like a village? Because, if it really was a 'CITY', essential services like water would be a priority in everybody's vision. This is NOT the case, unfortunately! We still have to buy our water like in villages or rural settings, from water vendors or if we have enough money, then to hell with the environmental impact, and we dig boreholes and wells meters from each other, near pit latrines, septic tanks, etc. Forget about the advice of keeping a kilometer's radius of an existing one.

People in Mombasa and Coast Province at large are getting very desperate. This does not have to be the case, if the powers that be would just stop thinking (if they even do that!), about getting it from the current sources. These, are liable to dry up when you think about global warming. We at the Coast, do not have to suffer the consequences, if, these decision (do they really even think?!), makers would think about providing essential services (instead of their capacious and selfish pockets), a few years in the future.

These wells and boreholes are going to dry up and/or get contaminated (some of them already, are), with sea water and some with.....sewage! After all sea levels are rising every year. An example is Mambrui whose residents have to keep moving further inland every year due to the ocean reclaiming the land.

And now back to these water kiosks - whom do they belong to? That is, who benefits from the revenue collected? I suspect that employees of the many water bodies are the real beneficiaries of this. Can somebody please investigate? And if in the process, my suspicions turn out to be correct, the next thing that is liable to happen is to close down these kiosks, I suppose! But, would the officials concerned please, also make sure that we get water before closing these things down?! Otherwise what would be the sense of doing this when we still don't get water?

Some of us don't want to buy suspect borehole or well water from these various water vendors. Please, keep this in mind.

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