By Zakariyya Fatima Abdulazeez (U19MM1039)
The Umar Suleiman Hall in Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) is currently experiencing water scarcity, just a day after the commencement of the load shedding exercise across all halls of residence in the university.
A special bulletin titled "Load Shedding and the Reaffirmation on the Ban on the Use of Electrical Appliances in Student Hostels," released on the 13th of July, stated that the exercise would begin on the 14th of July. According to the bulletin, power was expected to be interrupted daily from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
However, on the first day of the exercise, power was not interrupted until 9:00 a.m. and was only restored at 6:06 p.m., leaving many students frustrated and disappointed. As a result, the taps remained dry, not due to excess water, but because there was no electricity to power the water pump.
As of 4:28 a.m. today, only 5 out of the 10 taps in the general tap area where most students fetch water, were still running. By 5:50 a.m., the remaining taps were barely trickling.
Power was again restored this morning at 6:00 a.m. but interrupted by 8:54 a.m., giving students hope that water would be pumped so they could fetch.
As at the time of writing this report (2:35 p.m.), power is yet to be restored. Although water has returned to all 10 taps, the flow remains slow due to the high number of students fetching at the same time. Many students are surprised by the situation, especially since the water is supposedly pumped using a generator. This has led to speculations that there may be more to the issue than just load shedding.
"Na only Suleiman hostel own dey always dey different," many students lament.
Currently, many students depend on the hall's common room and their lecture venues to charge their devices. There is growing concern that the situation may persist indefinitely.
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