NEWS
CAPPA Commends Lagos on Adiyan II, Urges Increased Funding of Public Water
From Attah Ede, Makurdi
Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) yesterday commended the Lagos State Government for making significant strides towards funding critical water infrastructure across the state, particularly the Adiyan II Water Treatment Plant.
In a statement over the weekend, it said the steady progress on the project—12 years in the making—demonstrates that state-led and funded solutions remain the best pathway to expanding public water supply and achieving universal access to clean, safe, and affordable water for Lagosians.
According to reports from Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s recent visit to the facility, Adiyan II is now 80% complete and remains on track for its 2027 completion timeline.
In a further show of commitment, the state government has allocated an additional ₦20 billion in its 2025 fiscal budget to settle ‘outstanding liabilities’ for the project.While CAPPA commended the state’s efforts, it urged it not to hand over Lagos’ water sector to private profiteers once these projects are completed.
The statement emphasised that privatising Lagos’ water supply would undermine the massive investments already made by the state.
‘We strongly urge the Lagos State Government to resist any temptation to privatise or concession the Adiyan II project and other water treatment facilities across the state. Water is not a commodity to be sold to the highest bidder. If Adiyan II or any other public water facility is handed over to private corporations, Lagosians will suffer—higher tariffs, restricted access, and corporate exploitation,’ the nongovernmental organisation warned.
CAPPA cited failed privatisation experiments across Africa, where foreign-backed water projects collapsed due to skyrocketing costs, contract failures, and profit-driven policies that left millions without access to clean water.
Furthermore, CAPPA pointed to the recent withdrawal of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) from Lagos’ water sector as a critical lesson.
“What is happening with USAID is a textbook example of why governments should never outsource critical infrastructure to external financiers with hidden agendas.
“The Lagos State Government must recognise this as a blessing in disguise and take full control of its water sector rather than leaving it vulnerable to shifting donor priorities, where financial commitments are subject to geopolitical agendas, austerity measures, and changing domestic policies in donor countries, all of which can leave both governments and communities stranded,” said Akinbode Oluwafemi, CAPPA’s Executive Director.
The statement which was signed by Media & Communications Officer, CAPPA, Robert Egbe, however said, under the 2021 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Lagos State and USAID, no fewer than five mini waterworks were slated for rehabilitation with private sector involvement as a key component. However, USAID’s abrupt withdrawal of funding, driven by upheavals and funding cutbacks within the U.S. government, has laid bare the dangers of relying on external entities to provide essential public services. Beyond the immediate financial shortfall, this exit creates even deeper risks, leaving policy vacuums, stalling critical projects, and ultimately weakening local decision-making power over vital utilities.
With USAID gone, the Lagos Water Corporation’s Managing Director, Engr. Mukthar Tijjani has confirmed that the state is now seeking funding from other international agencies, including the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and France’s Agence Française de Développement (AFD), to sustain water infrastructure projects. CAPPA raised the alarm about this development, warning that these financial institutions have a long history of imposing harsh commercial conditions on public utilities.
“JICA and AFD have a track record of attaching dangerous conditions to their loans and grants—cost-recovery tariffs, bulk water purchase agreements, and privatisation clauses and mandates that prioritise corporate profits over public welfare. AFD, in particular, has close ties to Suez, a corporation notorious for its aggressive pro-privatisation stance and the devastation it leaves in its wake. If Lagos aligns itself with these buccaneers, residents will soon be burdened with unaffordable water tariffs while the state loses control over its own infrastructure,” CAPPA cautioned.
CAPPA encouraged Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to not be discouraged with the withdrawal of USAID but to rather treat it as a blessing in disguise and make history by keeping Lagos’ water under full public control.
“This is a defining moment. Lagos has the opportunity to lead Africa’s water justice cause by rejecting privatisation and strengthening its public water systems. As Engr. Mukthar rightly acknowledged in an interview on this matter, ‘…we need to rely on the state government more… it is more predictable…’ —unlike funding from external sources.
“The state must invest in the Lagos Water Corporation and the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, to enhance their operational efficiency, and ensure transparency in the sector rather than handing over control to foreign profiteers. The decisions made today will determine whether water remains a public good accessible to all Lagosians, or whether it becomes a luxury available only to those who can afford it,” the statement concluded.
CAPPA urged Lagosians to remain vigilant and demand that their government prioritise people over profit.
Poland plans to ban mobile phones in all primary schools from next academic year under draft legislation approved by the government on Tuesday.
The proposal, which will now be submitted to parliament, would take effect on September 1, 2026.
In Poland, primary school education runs through the eighth grade.
The planned law would prohibit the use of mobile phones and other devices capable of recording audio or video during lessons and breaks.
The ban would apply to both public and private schools, the Education Ministry said.
Exceptions would be permitted when the use of a phone is required for teaching purposes, educational support, or for health and safety reasons.
Education Minister Barbara Nowacka said the measure is a response to calls from teachers for stricter rules on smartphone use in schools.
She said that more than half of Poland’s schools have already introduced similar restrictions on a voluntary basis.
The government also approved a package of measures aimed at strengthening child protection online, which must likewise be approved by parliament.
The proposals include tighter restrictions on minors’ access to websites containing pornography and measures designed to speed up the removal of illegal online material.
Under the plans, operators of adult-content websites would be required to verify users’ ages anonymously, without collecting browser data or personal information.
By Ubong Ukpong, Abuja
Following the defection of the former minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Kingsley Chinda, the minority caucus has nominated Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere as their new Leader.
Sixty one out of the 81 minority members of the House on Wednesday, Select Hon.
Ugochinyere as Reps Minority Leader Designate, awaiting the Speaker’s announcement of the Opposition’s Decision.From the documents sighted by our reporter, majority of the lawmakers of the minority parties cutting across the entire minority bloc, namely ADC, NDC, APP, PRP, LP, APGA, APM, ACCORD and SDP, and across tribal, religious and zonal political lines voluntarily settled for Ikenga as their preferred choice.
From available information, the lawmakers today submitted the official nomination of the new Minority Leader designate, Ikenga, to the Speaker in line with the tradition of the parliament, which is stated clearly under the new Rule Book of the House of Representatives, Order 7, Rule 7, which provides that members shall elect among themselves the Minority Leader to lead them.The lawmakers, who spoke anonymously, expressed confidence that the Speaker of the parliament, as an unbiased leader, will swiftly make the announcement so that the minority can have its leadership in the next few days, and the parliament can be fully constituted with the minority fully represented. The lawmakers said they have also settled for nominees to fill the vacant positions of Minority Whip and Deputy Minority Leader, with one of the positions already taken by an NDC member from the North West. After ongoing harmonisation, the remaining list will be sent to the Speaker within the next few days for announcement.
The lawmakers said they settled for Ikenga because of his excellent legislative record, three years out of his four-year term, during which he sponsored and moved over 40 bills, motions and petitions, in addition to his four years as Senior Adviser to the Senate President, all of which have established him as a qualified candidate for the job. They said that the power to choose rests with the majority of the minority members, and that power has now been exercised, adding that any sentimental arguments will not change the decision of the minority lawmakers, who have overwhelmingly settled for one of their own.
They noted that, in the past, Sen. Akpabio was elected Senate Minority Leader after only three weeks in parliament, and that many others have been elected to top parliamentary positions with fewer years of experience. They added that even when the PDP zoned the speakership to the South West for Mulikat, the lawmakers elected Tambuwal and Ihedioha; when the APC zoned the Senate Presidency to the North East, the senators elected Sen. Saraki and Ekweremadu; and Dogara was elected after the position had been tipped for the South West. Parliament, they stressed, is rooted in the principle of majority decision and not sentiment. The lawmakers said their choice of Ikenga, with three years of legislative experience for a four-year job, is more than enough.
From Aliyu Askira, Kano
The Ungogo Local Government Area of Kano State has withdrawn the licences of all private schools within its jurisdiction following allegations that a teacher sexually abused four female pupils.
The decision was announced by the Education Councillor, Abdullahi Wakili, who said it followed a review meeting aimed at strengthening school oversight and addressing safety and moral concerns in the area.
Wakili explained that the council chairman, Tijjani Amiru Bilyaminu, has directed all private school proprietors to appear before a screening committee for fresh assessment before they can resume operations.
The action comes after the closure of Al-Hadeed Private School in the Inusawa area of Ungogo, where a teacher popularly known as Uncle Kamal was accused of abusing four underage pupils reportedly from the same family.
The suspect has been arraigned before a magistrate court in the Nomansland area of Kano on rape charges. The court ordered that he be remanded in custody and adjourned the case to June 9, 2026.
Authorities said the sweeping measure is intended to restore public confidence in private schools and ensure the safety of children across the local government.
“Our schools must be safe havens, not places of fear,” Wakili stated.
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