By Irene Abalo Otto
The National Water and Sewage Corporation (NWAS has said it will close down water sources that have been illegally drilled in the municipality once it is in position to supply enough water to residents.
Paul Rackara, the Gulu National Water branch manager told Acholi Times last week that their inspection found 72 water sources that had been illegally drilled in the municipality, mostly by big hotels keen to have control of their water supply.
But Rackara revealed that their inspection found that the 72 water sources are contaminated with fecal matter.
“We have carried out testing of water sources from hotels and written to them to close because they are heavily contaminated with traces of fecal matter. They are illegal and the moment we have enough water supply for the municipality, we will close them,” said Rachkara.
Rackara did not say when NWSC will have enough water for the Gulu municipality and when the illegal water sources will be closed.
Rachkara explained that clean water cannot be judged with naked eyes because the matter in the water is microscopic (can only be seen using specialized equipment).
However, a hotel manager in Gulu town told Acholi Times they are unhappy with the water supply from NWSC.
Ochieng Brian, the manager of Free Zone Hotel said that the hotel pumps its water from underground to their tanks because National Water is not consistent with its supply.
“National Water is not consistent for big businesses like us. We pump water straight from underground to our big tanks,’’ Mr Ochieng said.
Ochieng urged the management of National Water to find alternative ways of managing supply to maintain their clientele.
Gulu was recently hit with a severe water supply blamed by NSWC on a prolonged drought. With the return of the rains, water supply in Gulu has been nomalised. But experts have warned that unless a long lasting solution is got, Gulu is bound to face more water shortages in future.
According to Water for People, an International NGO, about 1.8 billion people around the world do not have access to adequate sanitation.
Women and children spend more than 4 hours walking for water each day and more than 840,000 people die each year from water-related diseases.
In Uganda, 17% of deaths in children under the age of five are simply due to diarrhea.
