Church Commissions Borehole In FCT Community

The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) has commissioned a borehole project in Gosa Community of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as part of its Christian Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative aimed at improving access to potable water and enhancing the wellbeing of residents.

The project, according to the RCCG Region 10, is designed to provide clean, safe and reliable water to the underserved community while contributing to improved sanitation, public health and sustainable community development.

Speaking with journalists after the commissioning, Pastor Jide Akiode, Pastor-in-Charge of RCCG Region 10 and Assistant 2, Continental Overseer, said access to water could contribute significantly to peace and stability within communities.

Akiode said the provision of basic amenities such as water could reduce unnecessary migration and competition over scarce resources, noting that small interventions that directly affect people’s lives could have far-reaching consequences.

“Already, an article from years ago said that in the Third World War, it is going to be a battle over water.
“If you tackle water, it’s likely you are going to stop people migrating unnecessarily. So, this one is going to ensure peace because people in this community will not need to go and fight over water elsewhere,” he said.

According to him, the church would continue to pray for good governance at all levels of government, stressing that governments should pay greater attention to the immediate needs of communities.

“What the Church can do, we continue to pray that God will give us good government at all levels. Not just talking about the Federal Government alone, but at all strata of government, that will think about the community,” he said.

Akiode added that peace could be strengthened through practical interventions that addressed people’s everyday needs rather than projects that had little direct impact on their lives.

“To ensure peace, all you need is small, small interventions like this, not the makeup projects as it were. There are little things that touch the life of people that keep them comfortable,” he said.

He also called for greater commitment to education and employment as tools for preventing social instability.

“Government should ensure everybody goes to school. As long as we have people without education, you can’t get peace. Education is going to become compulsory in Nigeria; it doesn’t matter where you come from,” Akiode said.

He urged other organisations and individuals to emulate the church by supporting community-based initiatives that directly improve people’s living conditions.

Also speaking, Pastor Dan Ogun, Assistant Pastor in Charge of Christian Social Responsibility, RCCG Region 10, said the decision to provide water in Gosa was informed by the obvious need for potable water in the developing community.

Ogun described Gosa as a relatively new and developing community with inadequate infrastructure, noting that even the church had experienced the water challenge while undertaking its own project in the area.

He stressed the importance of water to human existence, saying the resource had no substitute.

According to him, providing water would not only address thirst but also give residents renewed strength to pursue their daily activities and contribute to the development of the community.

“Once thirst is quenched, strength is renewed and strength is galvanised even to do several other things. Even the development of the community, we are trusting God because we are here,” he said.

Ogun said the borehole project was expected to be the beginning of further interventions in the community, including possible support for infrastructure.

A member of the RCCG Region 10 Christian Social Responsibility Board, Dr Rosaline Etukudo, said the mandate of the CSR arm was to touch lives, empower people and create sustainable improvements in communities.

She explained that the church’s CSR interventions were guided by the needs of communities and were intended to encourage residents to take ownership of projects provided for them.

Responding on behalf of the traditional ruler and residents, secretary to the traditional ruler of the community, John Bagu, expressed appreciation to RCCG for the intervention.

Bagu said the borehole would address one of the most pressing needs of the developing community, where access to water had remained a major challenge.