National Water Resources Bill will whittle my powers as Minister, says Engr Adamu
The Minister of Water Resources, Engineer Suleiman Hussaini Adamu has disclosed that, contrary to public misinformation, the National Water Resources Bill will actually whittle his powers as water resources minister.
He said this on Thursday in Abuja at a parley with media executives as part of the first quarter briefing on activities and achievements of the Water Resources Ministry.
Engr. Adamu said there is nothing in the Exectuive Bill to suggest that the Federal Government wanted to usurp powers of the state governments or favour any section or group against the others.
He stressed that the Bill, when passed, will limit the powers of the minister to only policy formulation and coordination of the nation’s water resources while State governments will continue to grant approvals in line with the Land Use Act.
Engr. Adamu, who noted that vocal elites are deploying propaganda to mislead the public on the good intentions and lofty provisions of the bill, urged Nigerians to read the bill so as to understand why it should be passed into law.
The Minister also highlighted some of the strides the Federal Government has recorded in areas of water and sanitation, dam and irrigation, river basins development, and especially the Clean Nigeria campaign to achieve the Open Defecation Free (ODF) Nigeria by 2025.
He said 57 local government areas in the country have been certified for ODF while the nation needs 3402 public sanitation facilities to overcome the challenges.
The Minister also disclosed that Kwara and Plateau states are currently at the bottom of the ladder in terms of prevalence of the unhygienic habit among the states of the Federation
Engr Adamu however noted that Governor AbduRahman Abdulrasaq of Kwara State has risen to the challenge by ⁰collaborating with the Ministry on behavioural change under the PEWASH action plan.
On the issue of climate change which he described as a global phenomenon, Engr. Adamu said Nigeria is developing resilience and adaptation strategy to mitigate climate impact on the nation’s water resources.
He said the climate impact is visible on the shrinking Lake Chad and other water resources, adding that the Ministry is making concerted efforts to ensure that farmers and other stakeholders are protected.
He emphasised that, as a manifestation of the Ministry’s commitment to climate action plans, the use of solar energy is being adopted for projects being undertaken by the Ministry, adding that everyone must also adopt eco-friendly behaviour.
