Yar’Adua Sneaks Home.

After much ado, the ailing president of Nigeria, Umaru Yar’Adua sneaked into Nigeria at the wee hours of 24^th February from Saudi Arabia where he had been receiving medical treatment.

It should be remembered that the president left the country over 70 days ago, leaving Nigerians in the dark as to the true condition of his health. Nigerians had to rely on a less than 3 minutes telephone interview on BBC to believe that Mr President was still alive.

We join millions of Nigeria in welcoming the news of the President’s arrival with a table spoon of salt. This is so because this his clandestine arrival like a thief in the night has thrown Nigeria into murky water of uncertainty. No body has seen the President and apart from questionable statement, Nigerians are not sure that the President is mentally alive to carry on the constitutional responsibility of ruling Nigeria.

Uncertainty 1. What becomes of the Acting in the capacity of Jonathan Goodluck? In a bid to arrive at a political solution to the constitutional crisis caused by the omission of President Yar’Adua to hand over, the National Assembly hiding under doctrine of expediency unconstitutionally made Mr. Goodluck an Acting President with the full powers of Mr. President. Do we need the National Assembly to remove this borrowed rob off Goodluck’s back? Or will Mr. President through the BBC inform Nigerians that he is back?

Uncertainty 2. Will Yar’Adua be ruling Nigeria through the voice of his Special Advisers and the numerous members of his kitchen cabinet?

With the current situation in Niger Republic Nigerian politicians should be careful the way and manner they handle these delicate times in the history of Nigeria.

 These are trying times for the Nation as we march unsteadily towards 50 years as a “Nation”

GM crops in Nigeria: true or false?

By  Joachim Ezeji                                                                                                                                                                                     It is timely to find out the official policy of the Nigerian government on Genetically Modified (GM) crops? This has become necessary in view of the crass ignorance of the average Nigerian on what GM crops are;  and, if Nigerians are ignorant of what exactly GM crops are, then how sure are we that these controversial and in some instances dreaded crops are not already here in Nigeria.

 

Again, some ubiquitous Nigerians have many uncanny ways and some of these include trading on banned and counterfeit products. They go all out, and even against extant laws of the country to buy and import into the country items they know too well are dangerous and disruptive to the economy and the environment such as used refrigerators, old cars and machinery, fake drugs as well as despoiled food items such as rice and many others.  This situation is further complicated by our porous borders and gullible security agents manning them. 

It is on this premise therefore, that I seek to discuss GM crops in Nigeria and possibly find out what the official position of government is on it.

 GM crops are crops or seedlings that have undergone genetic modification in the laboratory. This includes the introduction of a well-characterized gene or genes into an established genetic background or between species. A product of biotechnology or crop engineering, the resultant features include the ability of the crop to now grow and flourish in difficult terrains or barren farmlands; for example, they become drought resistant crops in arid soil or salt proof in high salinity farmlands.

 In year 2000, the Times magazine had discussed the work of the Swiss biologist Ingo Potrykus who led the team that engineered the “golden rice”. The rice, a flagship product of Biotechnology (in the words of Dick Taverne’s essay in Prospect Magazine, 2007) was to start a new green revolution to improve the lives of millions of the poorest people in the world. It was estimated to help remedy vitamin- A deficiency, the cause of 1-2million deaths a year, and could save up to 500,000 children a year from going blind. No other scientific development in agriculture in recent time is thought to hold such promise.

 

Only a decade after their commercial introduction, GM crops were already in cultivation in well over 100million hectares spread across 22 countries by over 10million farmers. About 9 million of of this number are resource-poor farmers in developing countries, mainly India and China. Most of these small-scale farmers grow pest-resistant GM cotton. In India alone, production has tripled over the past 3 years to over 10million hectares. This cotton has proven to benefit farmers because it reduces the need for insecticides, thereby increasing their income and also improving their health. 

However, beyond all these attributes, features and  claims, there are deep rooted fears amongst the enlightened world that GM technology is most unsafe and harmful to the environment, and that it only lines the pocket of the big agricultural companies. Though GM crops are in abundance in parts of Europe, they are also effectively banned in most countries. Indeed, EU regulations, based on the precautionary principle, provide safeguards against “contamination” of organic farms by GM crops; they require any produce containing more than 0.9 percent GM content to be labeled as such, with the clear implication that it needs a health warning and should be avoided.

 

However, in view of the extant food security woes in Africa, for example, in parts of West Africa, the average rate of application of NPK fertilizer is reported to be an abysmal 13kg per hectare; should GM crops be relied upon and allowed to close up the food supply gap and flourish in Africa? 

Factors responsible for poor fertilizer use have included cost and scarcity of the product when needed by farmers. The implication has been the heavy post harvest losses calculated at 50per cent for fruits and vegetables and 30per cent for root crops and tubers. Compared to the entire continent, recorded loses include 22kg of Nitrogen (N), 2.5kg of Phosphorus (P) and 15 kg of Potassium (k) per hectare per year through soil mismanagement. This is equivalent to US$4 billion worth of fertilizer (at United States prices) and likely US$30 billion at African fertilizer prices.

 

Also, sadly; with climate change now ravaging the continent, people are becoming increasingly affected as worsening droughts in particular is ruining the lives and livelihood of many households and have continued to hamper farming activities. Water mismanagement, inappropriate land use, as well as poor knowledge of anti-drought measures have continued to constrain the soil’s productive capacity to produce food. Consequently, local livelihoods are being jeopardized while increasing poverty for thousands of farmers expands.  

GM crops on the other addresses these loops as they reduce reliance on agrochemical sprays, saves energy, uses less fossil fuel in their production and reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases; and by improving yields, they make better use of scarce agricultural land. These have been confirmed by different studies and reports which reveal that the “environmental impact” of pesticides and herbicide use in GM –growing countries had been reduced by 15 per cent and 20 percent respectively.

 

Energy-intensive cultivation is being replaced by no-till or low-till agriculture. As at today, more than a third of the soya bean crop grown in the US is now grown in unploughed fields. Apart from using less energy, avoiding the plough has many environmental advantages. It improves soil quality, causes fewer disturbances to life within it and diminishes the emission of methane and other greenhouse gases. 

But whatever the merits are, there are oodles of dreadful demerits of GM crops. And one salient argument that is yet to be defeated is the fact that GM crops are “one-off-seeds” i.e. the seeds cannot be preserved or stored for replanting in the following farming season. This therefore imposes on the farmers the task of yearly purchase of the seeds at enormously high costs. How many poor farmers in Nigeria or other places in Africa can afford to go through this ritual yearly?

 

There are also other concerns such as the environmental threats, particularly those to biodiversity. It is feared that the takeover of natural environments by GM crops could easily lead to mass gene alteration in the entire ecosystem and that this could be counterproductive. 

These arguments remained the crux of a class debate amongst nine African scholars on environment while on a residency program at Brown University, USA last fall. We had debated that regardless of the so called abundant benefits that GM crops are evil and are capable of impoverishing Africans in the long run. This was based on our fear that it would erode indigenous or local seeds from Africa; and make the already impoverished small holder farmers and peasants perpetually dependent of imported seeds.
This argument also raised other fears, such as those that claim that once traditional farmlands have been exposed to GM crops, the entire landscape subsequently becomes the exclusive dominance of GM crops as no other crop would be capable of doing well in such farmland. Though this fear still remains hypothetical; empirical analyses in this regard may not even be necessary as people commonly prefer organically produced food because it is neither a quick-fix solution for world hunger nor an exploitative endeavor.  

 

As a country with large population; the most populated in Africa; the official policy of the Nigerian government on GM crops need to be known. Is it here already, or is it yet to arrive? Certainly, we need to know what the position of the Nigerian government is on this matter.  

But whatever it is, there is enormous need for citizen education on the pros and cons of GM crops to enable at least an understanding and awareness creation. This has the potential of assisting us, particularly the farmers from deceit and deception by those with ubiquitous uncanny ways.

Dora Akunyili: The woman who saved the nation

By

Joachim Ezeji

In the words of Dora Akunyili; …………….“Let’s just say I got tired of the whole thing. It just got too much for my mind. I could no longer live with myself. I was not sleeping well. I was depressed. My husband thought it was malaria but I knew it was not. I went for tests and nothing was found. I simply knew I could not continue to live a lie. On Tuesday night, I could not sleep at all and I spent half the night praying. That was when I decided to do the memo. I wrote and typed it myself. I only told my Assistants and Special Adviser on Wednesday”.

It has often been said that the future of Nigeria lies with women. Instances in this regards abounds and includes the exploits in courage made by Oby Ezekwesili and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala during their days as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Today both women are at the World Bank sharing their expertise and know-how globally.

But even since years past and present, one woman that has retained her doggedness in doing well and showcasing excellence is Dora Akunyili.  She is the only amazon, the enigma and the only courageous personality among her peers. Dora has every reason to walk shoulders high all over the country, whether north, south, east or west.

Talking about Dora on this occasion appeals so much to me at this moment because of the extra-ordinary courage she exhibited to break a logjam. She was the only person among men, even in the presence of “past this and past that” in the Federal Executive Council (FEC) of Nigeria that spoke out when it mattered most.

The story line ran thus: President Yar Adua had travelled out of Nigeria in the wee hours of 23^rd November 2009 to Saudi Arabia for a medical treatment. The president did not consider it important to hand over the reins of government to anybody, even to his deputy Dr Goodluck Jonathan. Neither did he even inform the members of the national assembly nor members of the Federal Executive Council.

The medical trip was a closely knit top secret with the presidency and household of the president. Since that date of departure, nobody ever heard from the president. His loyalist and members of his kitchen cabinet argued that the president was free to rule from any part of the world. The result was that a few hawks close to the president were taking questionable decisions incognito.

Nobody knew exactly the credibility of the source of most actions and directives being given as their facilitators insisted it came from the president. While these haze persisted, nobody heard from the president. The civil society in Nigeria kicked against this build up and rallies were organized against it . These took place in both Abuja and Lagos. Yet, the hawks kept the country hostage and remained defiant.

The entire country had waited with berthed breath the fast approaching swearing –in of the new Chief Justice of Nigeria as well as the signing of the 2010 budget. Both actions must be performed by the president and no one else. But what happened? The budget was signed overnight and attributed to the president. Later, the hawks led by the nation’s attorney general and minister of justice Mr Michael Aondoakaa, came up with a surprise. A smart attorney he was indeed. He came up with the idea that the outgoing Chief Judge of Nigeria (CJN) can swear in the incoming basing his argument on the Oaths Act which he said empowers the CJN to swear in another chief justice,

This rankled most Nigerians to the extent that it was generally condemned. Condemning the administration of oath on the CJN with a reference to section 130(2) of the 1999 Constitution, which says, “The President shall be the Head of State,” Professor Ben Nwabueze, a renowned constitutional lawyer and former education minister said such function was part of “the role of Head of State, designated expressly in the constitution. The Head of State incarnates the country. He is an embodiment of all the rights, dignities, and so on. So by virtue of this, the president is, constitutionally, the right person to swear-in high-ranking functionaries. It doesn’t matter what any other law says.

Professor Ben Nwabueze also said “Now, we consider also convention. Over the years, the swearing-in of CJNs has been done by the president, whether military president or civilian president. There is convention also. The difference between law and convention, you don’t need to bother yourself about that. Both law and conventions are necessary for effective constitutionalism.”

Responding to the argument that the Oaths Act also empowers the CJN to swear in another chief justice, he contended, “I am saying notwithstanding the provision of the Oaths Act. Will the Oaths Act prevail over section 130 of the constitution and the convention? That’s the question. I am aware of the provisions of the Oaths Act. But will it prevail over the practice and conventions of the country?”

Besides, Nwabueze said, “The swearing-in of the new CJN by the outgoing one was done three days before there was a vacancy. You swear a man into an office that is in existence, not an office that has not become vacant. He was sworn in three days before the outgoing one was to retire. There was no vacancy at the time the new CJN was sworn into office. We are talking about swearing into an office. There was no such office at the time of the swearing in.” The swearing of Justice Katsina-Alu as CJN actually took place a day before the expiration of the tenure of office of the former CJN, Justice Kutigi.

But as the groundswell over these events continued to build up, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria passed a resolution urging President Yar’Adua to transmit a letter of medical leave or vacation to pave the way for VP Jonathan to become Acting President. The Senate resolution, however, did not contain the mandatory language that many people have sought on the matter and it also did not give the President any certain deadline within which to do so. The Senate called it a “political solution” to the national debate raging over the President’s long absence from the country.

Briefing Senate correspondents, Chairman, Senate Committee on Information and Media, Senator Ayogu Eze, said: “For the past two days, five hours yesterday (Tuesday) and about three hours today (yesterday), the Senate had been engaged in very intense debate and examination of all the issues involved - constitutional, social, political and at the end of an exhaustive deliberation, we have decided to speak like statesmen because even though there were certain limitations we have in the constitution.

 “We are satisfied that what we have done now is in the best interest of the country to ease the tension and move Nigeria forward and that is why we have resolved to urge the President to honour Section 145 by notifying the National Assembly that he has proceeded on medical vacation, even though it is going to be in arrears as it were.

“We have come to the conclusion that it is right that the spirit of that provision be respected.  We also asked that this matter be committed to our committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution so that they will take into consideration the kind of confusion and the kind of unanticipated problem that arose from Section 145 because of its lack of specificity.

Despite these arguments, the hawks in the cabinet held their ground and refused to budge. They also supported their position by a phantom ruling in a federal high court in Abuja by Justice Abutu . The judge had on January 13 ruled that by the provisions of Section 5(1) and 148(1) of the 1999 Constitution, the vice president could, in the absence of the president, exercise all the powers vested in the president.

The judge was responding to a law suit brought by a concerned citizen, Mr. Christopher Onwuekwe, over an alleged leadership vacuum created by Yar’Adua’s absence.

Abutu said, “When the vice president is exercising the powers of the president as an Acting President, he is exercising that power in his own right as acting president and not on behalf of the president.” However, Jonathan can only exercise the executive powers on behalf of Yar’Adua because the president, who had been hospitalized in Saudi Arabia since November 23 last year for a heart condition, has not notified the National Assembly of his absence to enable his deputy act as president, Abutu maintained.

That judgment caused more confusion than understanding, and in effect created room for further manipulation by the hawks led by Mr Michael Aondoakaa. A follow up action came when The Federal Executive Council (FEC) in Abuja declared that President Yar’Adua was still fit to continue in office despite his more than two months medical leave in Saudi Arabia. The FEC challenged those who feel otherwise to seek redress in court.

The Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Chief Michael Aondoakaa (SAN), pointedly told State House correspondents after the FEC meeting that: “We followed the letters of Section 144 (of the constitution) and I think Section 144 allows him and if anybody thinks it doesn’t, he can go to court.”

“Well, the executive council is made up of people with high integrity, which is inclusive of the VP (Vice-President), who ordinarily is supposed to be the beneficiary of what other people are canvassing for.“I have told you that it is a unanimous decision and that alone should have shown you that he (Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan) is truthful and faithful because he took part in the decision.

“The medical treatment outside the country does not constitute incapacity to warrant or commence the process of the removal of the President from office under sections 144 and 146 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”, the AGF added.

 Reacting to demands by some Nigerians that Jonathan should be sworn-in as the Acting President, Aondoakaa said: “I also want to brief you on the issue of acting president and the history of acting president in other jurisdictions. The issue of acting president is a matter, which comes under the purview of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution. The condition precedent for it is that the president must write for a voluntary transfer of power to the VP to be the acting president.

“Where the president does, the VP automatically assumes the duties of an acting president. The constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria does not make provisions for any swearing-in, it is an automatic elevation to that position of the president but the job must start from the president.

Finally, the seeming unanimity among the Federal Executive Council (FEC) that President Umaru Yar’Adua is fit to govern soon had cracks and began to crumble. The first crack in the ranks of the president’s council of ministers emerged when Dora Akunyili, Hon. Minister for information, broke from the official position and submitted a memo calling on the FEC to own up to the president’s incapacitation on grounds of ill health.

The development initially caught the hawks in the council unawares and seemed to fire up other members who had been subdued on their perception of the leadership crisis that has enveloped the presidency since Yar’Adua sought medical care for his failing health in a Jeddah hospital in Saudi Arabia.

In her memo, Akunyili urged her colleagues to face up to the leadership vacuum in the presidency and the fact that President Yar’Adua’s health has impaired his ability to govern. Stressing the implications of the vacuum on the polity, she canvassed the view that the council should recommend to the president to adhere to the resolution of the Senate which directed Yar’Adua to officially transmit to it a letter on his medical vacation.

Apparently concerned with overwhelming call across the political landscape for the machinery of government to be stabilized through temporary handover of power to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, Akunyili said Nigerian people had been taken for a ride for too long and that it is time for the ministers to do the right thing by urging the president to step down.

Although Akunyili’s memo was stepped down by the hawks, majority of the ministers seemed to have been inspired by it, creating a tense atmosphere at the meeting. Although the minister’s memo was rejected by the hawks, “a cowardly majority of the members actually supported her position and some of them even congratulated her after the meeting, which lasted only 90 minutes.”

When Dora Akunyili, presented her memorandum asking her colleagues to wake up to their responsibility to the Nigerian nation, tempers flared and voices were raised. Some of the ministers rose from their seats so their voices would carry in the chambers of the Executive Council of the Federation. Some rained insults on her. A few asked her if she had weighed the risks of her presenting such a position paper.

                                                                                                                                                                              There were also threats of sack from those who felt Akunyili should not continue to stay in council after submitting such a strong-worded memo.  Reports showed that the memorandum took the ministers by surprise and if the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Yayale Ahmed, had not had the presence of mind to ask for the copies already in the hands of the members, it would have been difficult to calm frayed nerves at the meeting. There were 42 copies of the document with all of the members but when the ministers were told to return them, the SGF discovered that three copies were missing. It took another round of search and persuasion before the missing copies were retrieved. 

According to one of the ministers sympathetic to Akunyili’s stand, “I salute Dora’s courage because it takes courage to look your boss in the eye and ask him to step down for his deputy. Many of us are also not comfortable with the way things have gone in the country these past two months, which is why we are supporting her.”

Most of the ministers thought it was just another presentation from her ministry until she started reading. You should have seen the faces of some of the ministers. They shouted, hurled insults at her and some pointedly told her that her days were numbered in the council. They asked her if she had weighed the risks of her action. It was really a hot session.

In an interview in the press, Dora said “I am hopeful that the letter transferring power to Dr Goodluck Jonathan would finally arrive so that the tension in the country can be doused. I also expect that when President Yar’Adua returns, he will take over. The VP cannot stop him from returning to his office. It is not possible. Let me also state clearly that nobody wants Mr President dead. No child of God will wish a fellow human being dead. I don’t want my boss to die. Only evil people want him to die. He will return. So all this tension in the country is unnecessary, we all know what is right and that is what we should do”.

Dora Akunyili, a university professor, was formerly at the University of Nigeria Nsukka from where she was appointed Director General of NAFDAC, and later Minister of Information. Her memo ignited the inferno that later roasted the hawks as the national assembly and the civil society groups soon complemented the momentum and finally made VP Goodluck Jonathan , the acting president on Tuesday, 9^th February 2010 while Yar Adua recuperates in an unknown location.

Thank you, Dora for doing what men were afraid to do!

 

 

 

 

PDP: a highly coveted party?

When I read and watch what obtains in the Nigerian political arena, particularly events in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), I can’t help, but shudder. Often, I wonder if our present day politicians would have even had the opportunity if the past had been just like this. Would they have even have had the chance in the first place? Why on earth are PDP politicians behaving as it Nigeria started today, and as if it will end with just them? Nigeria was never as bad as it is has turned out recently. In years past, such as years as far back as 20, 30, and even 40 years ago, Nigeria was working. Politicians to a very relative extent knew their limits and of course stopped at such limits. But not any more these days. Today, politicians especially those in PDP have a larger than life idea about themselves and the capacity of their intents. To them, limits exists no more or could be infinitely manipulated. In their penchant to achieve such notorious ends the rest of us can go to hell. I have a Nigerian friend who has lived in Germany for well over 25 years, and of course a German now. As at today, Charles hates everything Nigeria and sees Nigeria is being beyond remedy. He sees PDP as Nigeria’s present day major ailment. To him, PDP amplifies everything that have gone berserk or that is utterly wrong about Nigeria. Whenever we discuss, he happily tells me that he is proud to be a German and ashamed to be a Nigerian. He says he is proud to be a German because he has now outgrown the overhang of international resentment of everything Nigerian; ranging from the world’s airports and daily interaction with foreigners. He says that he is so excited that his four children, all boys, are now born Germans and would benefit from the many opportunities that exist for citizens of Europeans and the entire western world instead of the massive opprobrium and drawbacks that afflict Nigerians. In his words; ‘’Nigeria is the only country in the world where elected officials, especially state governors and local government chairmen can easily decide to pocket state allocations or funds, using same to uplift themselves, secure their future via personal investments and do all sorts of private concerns at the expense of the citizens and the heaven will not fall’’. He says that they are so devilishly daring that any opposition to their ways is crushed. They never bother to bath an eyelid. These politicians are no doubt in other parties, but they are more in the PDP, and the party know that and gives them optimum cover. Is not amazing that a whopping 49 candidates are currently vying to become governor of Anambra state on the PDP ticket? What does this imply? Simply put, this implies rot that must be exploited by all those interested. If the ground is level, why should all contenders agglutinate in just one political party while more than 50 political parties exist? It is most interesting to ponder what the manifesto of each of these contenders looks like. I can bet you that most of them do not even have a manifesto and may also not even have a basic ideological school upon which to situate their interest or ambition to become a state governor. In Nigeria of this era, professional coup plotters (who retired from the military), failed business men, unsuccessful contractors, unemployment wrecked applicants, fizzling out conmen and laid back and crude individuals dominate the political space. These also include educated but morally depraved persons who see politics as the only lifeline to success. To them it is a do or die matter, and everything formal must be dismantled once it stands on their way. Why on earth should every politician want to belong to the PDP? From the bizarre state of affairs, I doubt if there are still well meaning politician left in the PDP mainstream. Everybody in the PDP of today either wants to be manipulated into office or to be appointed into positions of immense authority and influence. To them Nigeria is a bazaar that must be plundered without any spares. To them the future exists only for them and their households, and not for the rest of us; the side watchers! The motley crowd of 49 angling to secure the PDP’s gubernatorial ticket for Anambra State and the quagmire the party now finds itself speaks volume about the mentality of the average Nigerian politician. Why sale forms at that scale? The propensity to raise funds from form sales at such massive scale without an introspection of the backlash even when the party knows that it was not going to provide a level playing field to all the candidates’ smacks of treachery. A party that does that deserves to die, and PDP deserves nothing less. This brings me to the three state governors who recently abandoned their party platforms on which they were initially elected for PDP. What on earth were they thinking? Are they hoping to reap from the evil tendencies of the PDP? Yes, evil tendencies here mean, the ability of PDP to use state institutions such as the police, the military and INEC to its favour? I want somebody to help explain to me what they really hope to achieve from their new found love in the PDP. The driving motive behind the rush to join the PDP is simply insane. Politician rushing to join the PDP are simply doing so for selfish reasons. None of them is yet to adduce any convincing reasons for such action. No, not even one. But, why? The reasons as I earlier pointed out are not far fetched and are overtly selfish. This derives from the principal factor of the ability of the party to manipulate and bulldoze its way through the polity. Politicians are not performing, and are simply in politics to amass wealth and prosperity which their years outside politics have failed to achieve. The only sure pathway to achieving that is to go to that party that unfairly manipulates the polity to its favour irrespective of the consequences. Also, most of the politicians dying for the PDP have negligible intrinsic worth or credibility. They absolutely lack faith on their personal ability to convince and mobilize popular opinion hence the resort to a willing machine that easily rides roughshod over the people and the law. So, the only assurance to achieving their ambition is to join and remain in PDP. As at today, though keen and interested in party politics, I am not a card carrying member of any Nigerian political party and certainly do not admire any of them yet. However, if I am to choose, the PDP would not even make my selection list as I would like to prove my mettle by winning election from a party whose ideological leaning tallies with mine and which obeys and follows the rule of law in all sincerity. But then, will such a party ever get a fair and equal playing field? Perhaps, till Nigeria attains that level, the insane agglutination to the PDP will continue and Nigerians would remain worse off for it. But, Nigerians still have a chance to salvage the situation as Americans and Europeans cannot do that for us. We need to shine our eyes as events to the next general elections unfold. The country belongs to us and the people oppressing us did not come from the moon. We can stop them, and safeguard our future and save our upcoming generations from crying so much.

How to protect water supplies! (2)

As I discussed earlier in the month, one of the greatest challenges currently facing the water sector is how to effectively access and manage the safety of water sources in order to meet targets outlined in the Millennium Development Goals. On top of this concern is the pollution source and pathway provided by septic tank systems to water supply sources. However, and by far, the greatest water-quality problem in developing countries including Nigeria is the prevalence of water-borne diseases, especially gastro-enteritis which is related to faecal pollution and inadequate hygiene. A key consideration in managing a groundwater resource is its vulnerability to sources of contamination that are located primarily at and near the land surface. Because of generally low ground water velocities, once contaminants have reached the water table, their movement to nearby surface-water discharge areas or to deeper parts of the groundwater flow system is slow. For the same reason, once parts of an aquifer are contaminated, the time required for a return to better water –quality conditions as a result of natural processes is long, even after the original source of contamination are no longer active. Groundwater quality remediation projects generally are very expensive and commonly are only partly successful. It is therefore germane to understand what a septic tank system is, how it functions and how it can pollute groundwater. A septic tank is often a buried, water tight receptacle designed and constructed to receive wastewater from a home, to separate the solids from the liquid, to provide limited digestion of organic matter, to store solids, and to allow the clarified liquid to discharge for further treatment and disposal. The settleable solids and partially decomposed sludge settle to the bottom of the tank and gradually build up. A scum of lightweight material including fats and greases rises to the top. The partially treated effluent is allowed to flow through an outlet structure just below the floating scum layer. This partially decomposed liquid can be disposed of through soil absorption systems, soil moulds, evaporation beds or anaerobic filters depending upon the site conditions. The most important processes that take place within the tank include separation of suspended solids, digestion of sludge and scum, stabilization of the liquid, and growth of micro-organisms. Anaerobic bacteria degrade the organic matter in the sludge as well as in the scum and as a result of this bacteria action, volatile acids are formed at the first instance and eventually are converted mostly to water, carbon dioxide and methane. The formation of gases in the sludge layer causes irregular flotation of sludge flocs that resettle after the release of the gas at the surface. The performance of a septic tank greatly depends on its design. A properly designed septic tank performs efficiently in the removal of settleable matter and the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD).However, the effluent from a septic tank still contains high concentrations of BOD, pathogens, nitrogen and phosphorus, which prohibits its discharge into any water course or on land without further treatment. Under normal design conditions, reductions in BOD of 25-50% and in suspended solids (SS) of up to 70% have been reported in literature. The high reduction in BOD and SS can however be obtained by prolonging the retention time, which in most cases may not be practicable. Apart from the retention time, the other factors which affect the performance of the septic tank are; ambient temperature, the nature of the influent waste water, the organic content, the positions of the inlet and outlet devices in the tank etc. The digestion of the sludge and scum depends on the microbial population and the temperature. Sludge and scum decompose more slowly at lower temperature and are accelerated by an increase in temperature. The effluent from a septic tank is only partially treated and still contains high concentration of micro-organisms, BOD, phosphorus and nitrogen, which should not be discharged directly into a public water course or on land. Further treatment or other means of disposal are required. Where site conditions are suitable and do not pose any threat to Groundwater quality, sub-surface soil absorption is usually the best method for septic tank effluent disposal. However, the performance of the soil absorption systems depends on the ability of the soil to accept liquid, absorb viruses, strain out bacteria and filter the waste. A proper site evaluation requires accurate measurement of the soil permeability, the degree of slope, the position of the water table and the soil depth. The following general guidelines can be considered for selecting soil absorption sites; soil permeability should be moderate to rapid and the soil percolation rate should be generally 24 minutes per cm or less. The Groundwater level during the wettest season should be at least 1.22m (4ft) below the bottom of the sub-surface absorption field or soak pit. Impervious layers should be more than 1.22m below the seepage bed or the pit bottom. The site for an absorption field of a soak pit should not be within 15.24m (50ft) of a stream or other water body. A soil absorption system should never be installed in an area subject to frequent flooding. Three different types of sub-surface soil absorption systems are commonly used; absorption trenches; absorption beds or seepage beds; and absorption pits or soakage pits. The use of these types depends on the suitability of soil and other local conditions. These are deep excavations used for sub-surface disposal of septic tank effluent. Absorption pits are recommended as an alternative where absorption fields/trenches are not practicable and where the topsoil is underlain with porous soil or fine gravel. The capacity of an absorption pit can be computed on the basis of percolation tests to be made at the disposal site. Soakaways or soakage pits are mostly used in urban Nigeria but more troubling in densely populated areas. The septic tank effluent flows through pit walls made of open jointed bricks, into the surrounding soil. Typically, soakaways can be 2 to 3.5m in diameter, and 3 to 6m deep depending on the amount of wastewater flow and the infiltration capacity of soil. Leach pits for VIPs and pour flush latrines have to be designed for storage and digestion of excreted solids as well as infiltration of the liquid waste into the surrounding soil. Designing for storage and digestion of solids is exactly the same as for all dug pit latrines.

Infiltration of the liquid effluent however, requires that sufficient pit-soil interface area is available depending on the long term infiltration capacity of the soil. Pit effluent enters the soil first by infiltrating the pit-soil interface, which is partially covered in a bacteria/slime layer, and then by percolating away through the surrounding soil. The long term infiltration rate depends on the type of soil. The liquid effluent from leach pits of different types of pit latrines will infiltrate both laterally and vertically into the soil and through to the groundwater if the aquifer is an unconfined one.The basic principles of on-site systems, however, remain the same: liquids infiltrate into the soil and the solids are retained, anaerobically digested and have to be removed or a new pit has to be dug at regular intervals. The basic on-site systems are primarily designed to dispose of human excreta. Wastewaters from cooking, clothes washing, and bathing are collected in small drains and disposed of in soakaways for infiltration. If the leach pit bottom is close to the Groundwater table, then bacteria or other contaminants may travel both downwards and laterally, transported by the Groundwater. The lateral movement will always be in the same direction as the flow of the Groundwater. It is therefore important that latrine locations are carefully selected with respect to sources of water supply, to avoid the risk of pollution. It has been indicated that if there are at least 2.0meters between the pit bottom and the Groundwater table, little microbial pollutant travel occurs in most unconsolidated soils and a horizontal distance of 10.0meters between a drinking water well and a latrine is often satisfactory.

Concluded !

How to protect water supplies !

By Joachim Ezeji

 

One of the greatest challenges currently facing the water sector is how to effectively access and manage the safety of water sources in order to meet targets outlined in the Millennium Development Goals. On top of this concern is the fact that water quality is an essential component of public health. Traditionally, drinking water supplies from groundwater have often been associated with natural quality problems which are often related to local geology. This is so because the interaction between water and rock forming minerals during groundwater circulation may lead to the build-up of harmful concentration of some trace elements. Other health effects in drinking water supplies from groundwater may be caused by element deficiencies where rocks have low concentration of essential elements. Water may also be unacceptable due to aesthetic problems such as bad odour or taste (caused, for example by iron and hydrogen sulphide) or staining problems (iron and manganese). However, and by far, the greatest water-quality problem in developing countries including Nigeria is the prevalence of water-borne diseases, especially gastro-enteritis which is related to faecal pollution and inadequate hygiene. There is no doubt that health can be compromised when harmful pathogens contaminate drinking water either at the source, through seepage of contaminated run-off water, or within the piped distribution system. Moreover unhygienic handling of water during transport or within the home can contaminate previously safe water. The choice of an appropriate sanitation system for growing and dense urban populations is increasingly becoming a public health concern particularly in the developing world. The F-Diagram had underscored sanitation as an imperative intervention necessary for breaking the link between human waste (excreta) and the individual (person), but is that actually the case with many sanitation systems covertly discharging poorly treated effluents to water bodies?. In the face of this realization, are latrines/ toilets still to be recorded as sustainable stop gaps for the spread of faecal pathogens?; Does the discharge of poorly treated and raw faecal matter and effluents into streams, rivers and ground water not compromise public health?, Is the problem a technology and management issue or a construction and development issue? A 2006 World Health Organisation (WHO) report had revealed that as much as 24% of global disease is caused by environmental exposures which can be averted. Well-targeted interventions can prevent much of this environmental risk, the WHO report said. The report further estimates that more than 33% of disease in children under the age of 5 is caused by environmental exposures. Preventing environmental risk could save as many as four million lives a year in children alone, mostly in developing countries.  The report, Preventing disease through healthy environments - towards an estimate of the environmental burden of disease, is the most comprehensive and systematic study yet undertaken on how preventable environmental hazards contribute to a wide range of diseases and injuries.  By focusing on the environmental causes of disease, and how various diseases are influenced by environmental factors, the analysis breaks new ground in understanding the interactions between environment and health. The estimate reflects how much death, illness and disability could be realistically avoided every year as a result of better environmental management. The report estimates that more than 13 million deaths annually are due to preventable environmental causes. Nearly one third of death and disease in the least developed regions is due to environmental causes. Over 40% of deaths from malaria and an estimated 94% of deaths from diarrhoeal diseases, two of the world’s biggest childhood killers, could be prevented through better environmental management. The four main diseases influenced by poor environments are diarrhoea, lower respiratory infections, various forms of unintentional injuries, and malaria. Measures which could be taken now to reduce this environmental disease burden include the promotion of safe household water storage and better hygienic measures; the use of cleaner and safer fuels; increased safety of the built environment, more judicious use and management of toxic substances in the home and workplace; better water resource management.                                                                                                       

 

 “For the first time, this new report shows how specific diseases and injuries are influenced by environmental risks and by how much,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director of WHO’s Department for Public Health and Environment. “It also shows very clearly the gains that would accrue both to public health and to the general environment by a series of straightforward, coordinated investments. We call on ministries of health, environment and other partners to work together to ensure that these environmental and public health gains become a reality.”           

The report and executive summary - Preventing Disease Through Healthy Environments: towards an estimate of the environmental burden of disease can be found on: http://www.who.int/quantifying_ehimpacts/publications/preventingdisease/en/index.html.

In view of the foregoing, it is germane to underscore that as stated above; an estimated 94% of deaths from diarrhoeal diseases is a big issue and generally an issue linked directly with sanitation as well as hygiene. Preventing these through better environmental management is the kernel of my study.  Measures already listed that could be taken now to reduce this environmental disease burden include amongst others the promotion of safe household water storage and better hygienic measures; and the  increased safety of the built environment, as well as better water resource management.                                                                                                       

To achieve these measures I agree with the fact that sanitation systems involves all arrangements necessary to store, collect, process and deliver human wastes back to nature in a safe manner. Sanitation systems with respect to human waste management may be considered to have the following functions; excretion and storage; collection and transportation; process/treatment; and disposal /recycle. Sanitation represents an immense problem that appears differently in various parts of the world. In the developing countries like Nigeria, its lack or inadequacy is the major issue. It should not be forgotten that sanitation options basically depend on the type of water supply, management of wastes, receiving water quality and environment. For instance, public water supply and the flush toilet principle automatically entail expensive sewerage and wastewater treatment that need to constantly be upgraded due to the recognition of emerging problems. Thus, it is evident that sanitation is not only a health and technology issue but much more; environmental, sustainability, social, institutional, and legislative implications are also crucial, and a broad approach is looked for that takes into account all these aspects when selecting from the various existing alternatives.The classification of sanitation as on-site or off-site systems depends on whether the waste is stored, treated and disposed of at the point of generation or transported to somewhere else for treatment and/or disposal. When the wastes are collected, treated and disposed of at the point of generation, it is called an on-site system e.g. pit latrines and septic tank systems etc.

Next week I will discuss this a little further.

 

To be continued next week.

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