Mon, 12 Dec 2016 11:00:12 +0000
LACK of a comprehensive sewer system in Nyimba district of Eastern Province is exposing residents to a health hazard, area Member of Parliament Olipa Phiri has said.
Ms Phiri told the Daily Nation in an interview that there was no sewer system in Nyimba and that residents have since resorted to digging their own septic tanks.
She explained that the district had a challenge of water and that residents depended on underground water which was now getting contaminated as a result of the proliferation of septic tanks.
She said the situation had made residents vulnerable to waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid.
“The situation in Nyimba is very sad and heart-breaking; up to now the residents do not have a sewer system and they still face water challenges; so they depend on underground water which is now becoming unhealthy because it is being contaminated by sewer water,” she said.
Ms Phiri appealed for Government’s quick intervention before the situation got out of hand as the health of the residents was at stake.
She said that people of Nyimba had the right to clean water and sanitation, just like people in other parts of the country. “Government should take this issue seriously as it involves people’s rights. We should not wait for a disaster to happen before we act. The situation needs to be addressed now before it gets out of hand,’’ Ms Phiri said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Water Development, Sanitation and Environmental Protection Lloyd Kaziya last week told Parliament that Government was aware of the situation in Nyimba.
Mr Kaziya however said Government had no immediate plans to put up a sewer system in the district.
He said Government has since rehabilitated sewer ponds at Nyimba Secondary School to manage waste water.
He promised that Government would strive to provide 90 percent coverage of adequate sanitation in the area in line with the Vision 2030.
