The Conference of Civil Society of Nigeria has expressed support for the passage of the controversial National Water Resources Bill.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Monday, chairperson of the group, Comrade Adams Otakwu, said majority of the people who are opposed to the new bill are totally ignorant of the content as they have not read the bill.
He disclosed that the bill is not totally new as it is a consolidation of several existing legislations on the water sector.
He said, “Our finding reveals that about 95 per cent of Nigerians have not studied the content of the Bill closely, only five per cent of Nigerians have perused the bill. About 98 per cent of those who have studied the bill, support it, over 1.8 per cent of them are indifferent, while less than 0.2 per cent of them discredit and oppose it.”
“This invariably implies that the more Nigerians study the bill closely, the more they embrace and support the content of the bill.”
“This analysis and presentation are necessary in order to debunk the insinuation that the Bill is being opposed by a vast majority of Nigerians. However, we shall sustain our enlightenment across the remaining 95 per cent of Nigerians who are yet to avail themselves of the content of the bill.
“Our study of the bill (which is not a new creation, but rather a consolidation and modification of four extant statutes) is of interest to the Nigerian civil society given some issues it addresses.
“Our analysis shows that the Bill will: Upgrade our water resources sector by over 90% than it is currently, to be in tandem with global trends and international standards of ethics, decency and professional practices in Integrated Water Resources Management.
“De-risk aquatic ecosystems across hydrological areas and basins as well as promote dam safety, effective reservoir operations and management, and environmental integrity by over 75% than it is currently.
“Open up the water resources sector for public-private investment that will increase job and employment opportunities by over 65% than it is currently,” he said.
