Residents of Faza in Lamu East want the county government to speed up the completion of the multimillion-shilling Vumbe Faza water project following delays in piping works.
The residents questioned why the county government commissioned the project last month before piping works are completed. They also said the water, which is drawn from Vumbe in the mainland, is salty and has to be desalinated.
They lamented that is has taken too long to complete the water project, yet a lot of money has been spent. A few people already using the water say it is salty, yet they were promised freshwater, they said.
Reached for comment, Paul Kimani, the water director in Lamu county, said promised to give a briefing on the project. He was still in a meeting at the time. He later said he was in hospital in Malindi and promised to call back. He had yet to respond.
Ali Abdalla, a resident, said the project has had challenges because the water, which has cost a lot of money, is salty and may not be of help to them.
Speaking on the Island, he said the funds ought to have been channelled to other projects such as housing to help people who sleep in the cold.
"The water is not good not only for cooking but even for bathing. One would rather go and take a shower in the ocean than use the tapped water," he said.
The county government under Governor Fahim Twaha began installing pipes to households to enable them to get piped water the first time since Independence.
Reports indicate that the governor recently commissioned the project in Faza, yet the contractor is still onsite doing piping works.
Abdalla said people still use rainwater because the piped water is too salty and does not solve their problem.
Nia Abushir said the project has not been of help as they still have to harvest rainwater even though piping has reached some households.
She urged the county government to speed up the project and desalinate the water so people can save money given to vendors.
One jerrycan of rainwater goes for Sh20, while porters charge Sh10 a jerrycan.
During droughts, water costs Sh250 per jerrycan as it has to be supplied from Lamu Island.
"Currently, we depend on wells and storage tanks that harvest rainwater which is costly,'' he said.
Abushir said it will be a huge relief once the project is completed and they get fresh water as it will save them the tiring process of carrying buckets on their heads.
She said some have been travelling long distances to Tchundwa.
Mwanasomo Athman expressed concern that they have relied on drink salty water for long and the problem might continue if the piped water is not desalinated.
She called on the county government to ensure that water is fresh, adding that their hopes could be dashed if no desalination is carried out.
"We want the authorities to bring fresh water like the one that is being supplied on Lamu Island to save us costs of buying freshwater."