LAGOS, Nigeria — Mahmood Adegbite, the Permanent Secretary in the Office of Drainage Services and Water Resources, has issued a stark warning to residents of Lekki and surrounding areas in Lagos: borehole water in the axis may be contaminated with human waste.
Speaking at a stakeholders meeting on Tuesday, August 5, 2025, Adegbite said that recent findings indicate dangerously high levels of faecal contamination in groundwater sources across the Lekki Peninsula — a rapidly growing residential and commercial hub of the city.
“Everyone digging a borehole within the Lekki axis is probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water’,” Adegbite bluntly stated.
The official attributed the contamination to poor wastewater treatment infrastructure, which allows untreated sewage to seep into the groundwater table.
He warned of serious public health consequences if urgent measures are not taken.
Adegbite highlighted that the Lagos State Government has developed plans to improve wastewater management across the Lekki corridor.
He noted that treating wastewater at scale would help mitigate the risk of disease outbreaks linked to groundwater pollution.
“If we are able to treat all the wastewater within this axis, which we have plans for, we should be able to also eradicate any form of disease that might result from non-treatment of our waste,” he said.
The permanent secretary also addressed Lagos’ ongoing flood crisis, particularly following recent torrential downpours that left parts of the city submerged.
Adegbite acknowledged that while the government has made significant investments in drainage infrastructure, current efforts are insufficient given the scale of the challenge.
“Despite the fact that we have committed so much, we still need to do a lot in that space,” he admitted.
His remarks echo warnings by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) and the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), both of which forecast intensifying rainfall and flash floods in the coming weeks.
