A coalition of civil society groups have called on the federal government to implement the resolution of the July 28, 2010 United Nations General Assembly, which recognizes the human right to water and sanitation and the importance of clean drinking water and sanitation.
They called on government to remove every obstacle to citizens’ access to these important resources. In a 14-point communique at the end of a one-day National Town hall meeting on the Water Resources Bill held in Abuja, the CSOs called on governments at all levels to wean themselves of the privatisation and Public Private Partnership (PPP) addiction which has failed across the globe.
In one voice the coalition called on the federal government to discard the obnoxious National Water Bill and kickstart a fresh community-led process and consultation to birth a true and inclusive National Water Bill at the National Assembly
The CSOs comprising of Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service, Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE), Public Services International (PSI) and the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) said the townhall was informed by the need to further heighten engagement by critical stakeholders to again reaffirm opposition to the contentious National Water Resources Bill as reports swell about plans for its re-presentation at the House of Representatives.
In his welcome address, Mr. Akinbode Oluwafemi, Executive Director of CAPPA noted that from the second to the last quarter of year 2020 there was national outcry about the obnoxious provisions of the Bill and the manner through which its promoters in the Ministry of Water Resources and the National Assembly tried to force it on the nation.
