Water challenge of Kpong community: 20-Year-old Female Corps Member set to build free borehole for villagers
Posted by Ahmed Iyanda | 3 years ago | 1,688 times
A 20-year First class graduate and a corps member, Bilqees Lawal who is currently serving in Rivers State has taken it upon herself to build a free borehole for people of Kpong community in Khana LGA in Ogoni land in the state.
Speaking with Western Nigeria Publica, Bilqees said she found out that the villagers' source of water is a dirty river contaminated with faeces, hence the reason for taking the responsibility to ensure that the community have access to clean water.
The kind-hearted young lady would however be needing support from well-meaning individuals to bring to reality the project that will cost N1.5 million.
Kpong community home to 5,000 people is a remote community where its dwellers have for years lived in poor conditions that included them getting drinking water from a river that is contaminated with faeces and other waste materials.
Help may yet be on the way for people of Kpong, a community in Rivers State who have been drinking dirty water as a young female corps member is set to provide them with a free borehole.
Bilqees Lawal, who emerged the best graduating student of her department after bagging a first-class in accounting from Achievers University, Owo, Ondo state was posted to Khana LGA in Rivers state for her NYSC.
Bilqees stated that she was touched by the deplorable condition in which the people lived in and sought to make an impact.
In her words: "Naturally, it's not my style to leave any environment. I find myself just the way I met it. It was the willingness to be a change maker inspired by the underprivileged living conditions of fellow humans that led me to take this path."
According to her, the goal is to provide the community with a motorised borehole but may resort to a manual hand pump if the money available isn't enough as the project costs N1.5 million to execute. A trusted online platform has been created for donations and support.
A trusted online platform has been created for donations and support.
"The borehole would definitely be accessible to all members of the community due to distance. However, we can say over 500 to 1000 should be able to benefit from the facility. The project execution will commence towards the end of 2021, she added.
Speaking on the challenges so far, the corps member noted that she hasn't received enough support despite writing and visiting corporate organisations, non-governmental organisations, religious organisations, humanitarian and political organisations, Bilqees said she is ready to give her best to ensure the project comes into fruition.
"As a Corp member, I’m constrained by time in terms of authorization in carrying out a community development service.
"The realization of this goal is not certain due to the fact that the project is capital intensive and responses for now are quite low. However, no hope is lost, I’m putting my best to bring it to reality."
She, however, pleaded to the members of the public not to see this as a fraudulent act and consequently give their undiluted support towards this service to humanity.
