By Taban Gabriel
King News-28th August 2024 Juba. A motion brought forward on Wednesday by Khalid Abdallah Adam, a member of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) representing Raja County, sparked turmoil in parliament as he condemned the exorbitant water prices imposed on Juba residents.
“Today in Juba, Honorable speaker, the price of water has reached SSP 6000. The information I have is that the Urban Water Corporation charges only SSP 500 per barrel, and the whole water tank carries 30 barrels per trip, which amounts to SSP 15,000. A liter of diesel is SSP 6,000, and one trip from Seven-Days to Gudele and return consumes 2 liters, which is all SSP 12,000. The grant total will cost the owner of the truck SSPP 27,000. It means if we calculate the whole amount, a water truck owner gets SSP 210,000, see how much the profit is,” Khalid said
“How do we help our citizens, Right Honorable speaker? We have to come out to save our citizens from the hands of brokers who have infiltrated our systems of government right away, from the local government up to the city council. Honorable Speaker, our people have suffered,” he added.
While responding to the motion, members of parliament gave mixed reactions, with some suggesting that officials in charge of water at both the National and State levels be summoned to answer questions regarding the water crisis and explain some of the water projects being implemented in Juba.
“Because the issue is going forward, we can summon the Minister of Water and Irrigation, the Urban water, and the mayor of Juba City because they are taxing the water tanks,” said Taban Luka Guya, a representative who hails from Central Equatoria State.
The opposition chief whip, Faruk Gatkouth, who hails from Unity State, also called for Central Equatoria’s governor to be added to the summons list.
“We can’t summon the Mayor (of Juba City Council) and the Commissioner (of Juba County) without the governor (of Central Equatoria State) because some of them report to him. We must summon all of them. They sit over there, and we talk to them faithfully and honestly,” he said
Jackline Nyibol Benjamin Ajongo from Northern Bahr El Ghazal questioned the intention of why water pipes haven’t been extended to houses.
“The issue of water is a very critical issue, but my issue is that I have seen the connection of water pipes in Juba. What is hindering the connectivity to reach the houses? We really want to know what is happening from the committee of water in parliament,” she inquired.
Atem Garang from Jonglei State disagreed with the summon but charged the specialized committee to execute the decision.
“The specialized committee should be tasked to go and investigate why this water is like this like that. Because if you ask them right now, you will not get a specialized reply. The specialized committee should go out there and find how much a barrel costs, and then they will come and report to this house,” he said.
Upon thorough deliberation, the speaker of Parliament, Jemma Nunu Kumba, who chaired the sitting, tasked the Specialized Committee for Water and Irrigation with writing the summons to four officials, including the Governor of Central Equatoria State, the Minister of Water and Irrigation, Urban Water Corporation, and the Juba City Mayor.