Residents of Namawanga village in Kibingei ward of Kimilili Sub County are a dissatisfied lot as a spring they depend on for water isn’t producing enough water to cater for their large population.
A spot check by West Media confirmed that the residents queue by the spring from as early as 4am and leave the spring as late as 10 pm as they struggle to get water for their daily domestic needs. The spring has only one outlet that does not produce much water.
Grace Nanyama, one of the residents, says the spring was constructed by the Bungoma County Government but says the construction was not done well as the water access is minimal and also it stagnates at the collecting point forcing them to set deep in the spring saying it is a health risk.
“We are told that the County government spent a lot of money on this spring yet it was not well constructed, it has two outlets yet only one is functioning and also the water stagnates which may also lead to contamination,” she lamented.
She disclosed that the women are occasionally told to dig a tunnel to have the water flow away and those who do not participate have to part with fifty shillings saying it is unfortunate yet the spring was constructed and commissioned by the County government to help them.
Kimilili parliamentary hopeful Richard Masinde Sibilibili who visited the spring expressed his willingness to renovate the spring saying the residents have suffered for a long period and he is ready to help them have the spring well constructed to produce enough water.
He said he has already done a feasibility study saying the spring if well constructed will be able to produce enough water through the two outlets saying it is unfortunate that the area chief Stanley Baraza has not given him a go ahead to start the construction due to some logistical issues.
However, he called for an audit to be carried out on all the springs constructed by the Bungoma County government in the constituency saying he has toured many other places and the construction was also not done well despite spending a lot of money on them.
The area chief through his representative said since the residents do not have an alternative source of water they will continue using the spring the way it is.
