FCT community decries lack of health centre, water

Residents of Zhigbodo community in Tungan-Maje ward of Gwagwalada Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have expressed concern over the lack of a health centre and access to potable drinking water. Some residents who spoke when Abuja Metro visited the community on Saturday said the absence of a health facility has remained a […]

Residents of Zhigbodo community in Tungan-Maje ward of Gwagwalada Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have expressed concern over the lack of a health centre and access to potable drinking water.

Some residents who spoke when Abuja Metro visited the community on Saturday said the absence of a health facility has remained a major challenge over the years.

They said patients, including nursing mothers and pregnant women, often travel to neighbouring Suleja in Niger State to access medical care.

Mrs Hawawu Gambo, a nursing mother, told our reporter that she had to commute by motorcycle to Suleja throughout her pregnancy to access antenatal care.

She said her husband conveyed her on a motorcycle through narrow paths every week for antenatal visits until she gave birth to a baby girl two months ago at a health facility in Suleja.

A resident, Godwin Samari, described the lack of a health centre as a persistent challenge, noting that patients are compelled to seek treatment outside the community.

“In fact, even I personally presented the matter of this lack of health centre here in this community before successive administrations, which has not yielded any positive response,” he said.

“You can imagine what patients go through, especially during emergencies. Our pregnant women have to be conveyed on motorcycles to neighbouring Suleja in Niger State to access basic antenatal care and even deliver their babies there,” he added.

Also speaking, the village head, Malam Saidu Zakariyah, lamented the lack of access to healthcare, saying residents must travel to Suleja whenever they fall ill.

He said the community had repeatedly appealed to the council authorities to provide a health centre, but nothing has been done.

Zakariyah also decried the lack of potable water, noting that residents depend on ponds for their water needs.

He said community members often dig ponds, especially during the dry season, and wait for hours before fetching water for domestic use.

“And even sometimes, cows go to the pond to drink, especially after our women have fetched water and left the place,” he said.

“And I believe you went to see one of the ponds that our people drink from. After fetching the water, they have to apply alum so that the sediments will settle before they can drink it,” he added.

The village head said the persistent water challenge has forced some residents to relocate to neighbouring communities in Suleja.

He appealed to the Gwagwalada Area Council authorities to urgently provide both a health centre and potable water for the community.

Meanwhile, a senior official in the council’s works department, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said plans were underway to address the situation.

He disclosed that the council chairman, Alhaji Abubakar Jibrin, had directed officials to identify a suitable location for a borehole.

“You know the provision of a borehole and health centre for the community has already been captured in the council’s budget. It was just last week that the chairman directed officials of the works department to visit the community and assess a suitable site for a motorised borehole,” he said.