Lagos ‘shit water’ boreholes evidence of govt failure — CAPPA

By Chioma a Obinna

The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa, CAPPA, has faulted the Lagos State Government over its recent admission that residents of the Lekki Peninsula may be consuming faecal-contaminated water from boreholes, describing the revelation as proof of years of neglect in the state’s public water system.

The group was reacting to a statement credited to Mahmood Adegbite, Permanent Secretary, Office of Drainage Services and Water Resources, who last week told a gathering that residents were “probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water’” due to contaminated underground sources.

In a press statement issued yesterday, CAPPA said while Adegbite’s blunt comment had attracted attention, the real concern was the government’s refusal to take responsibility for the crisis.

“Boreholes and dug wells in Lagos are not luxury choices for residents. They are a survival response — the last resort of a people forced to provide their own water because public institutions have failed to deliver this basic need,” said Akinbode Oluwafemi, CAPPA’s Executive Director.

According to the group, for decades many communities across Lagos, including Lekki, have been left with no option but to rely on self-supplied, unsafe water due to the state’s inability to provide reliable and affordable public water services.

It accused the government of “mocking residents” for drilling boreholes instead of addressing the root cause  chronic underinvestment in public water infrastructure, poor wastewater management, untreated sewage, and failed sanitation systems.

“You cannot neglect your constitutional duty for decades, then turn around to shame people for doing what they must to survive,” Oluwafemi added.

CAPPA also criticised what it described as the government’s repeated flirtation with “discredited privatisation models” that prioritise profit over people, warning against reviving such policies without public consultation.

The group called for urgent and dedicated public investment in water and sanitation, the suspension of all market-based water reforms, and the adoption of a publicly led, community-focused water governance framework. It also urged the Lagos State Government to develop a state-wide emergency plan targeting underserved communities, repairing broken wastewater systems, and integrating climate-resilient water strategies.

While it acknowledged the need to regulate indiscriminate borehole drilling, CAPPA insisted this could only succeed if viable public water alternatives were first provided.

“Lagosians are not to blame for drinking unsafe water. They are victims of policy failure. This failure must be acknowledged and corrected, not weaponised to justify anti-people reforms,” the statement added.

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