Waterborne Diseases To Break Out In Bong -Residents Alarm Over Safe Drinking Water Shortage

By Patrick Stephen Tokpah/BONG
Report reaching the Inquirer Newspaper says residents of Sanjaquelleh Community are in dire need of safe drinking water, a condition that has forced many to fetch water from contaminated creeks and open pits, leaving them with severe health complications.
Sanjaquelleh Community is situated in Bong County Electoral District 3 on the outskirts of Gbarnga but lacks social amenities, including safe drinking water.
Henry Kollie, a resident of the Community, told the INQUIRER that the inhabitants of the community usually fetch drinking water from open and contaminated wells; a devastating situation he said is causing a serious threat to their health in the region.
He said diarrhea and other waterborne diseases commonly affect residents of the community as a result of the intake of polluted waters.
“We are really suffering here for safe drinking water; only creeks and spoiled wells water we are drinking, and they are not safe for our consumption,” Kollie stated.
Moreover, the Sanjaquelleh Community native added that the community has been surviving on a single-hand pump that was constructed by an organization under the banner “United Arab Emirates” but it has since been damaged due to extensive use, and it couldn’t serve the growing population of the Community.
Meanwhile, Kollie has expressed fear over the threat of a looming waterborne pandemic and launched an appeal to the government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to quickly remedy what he describes as ‘their unfortunate situation.’