THE Central Agency for Auditing,an official agency, has recently shocked the public by issuing a report showing that around 48 per cent of the Egyptian citizens have no access to sewerage services. According to the report,the Upper Egyptian governorates of Assiut and Qena have the highest percentage of citizens lacking this vital service, reaching 89 per cent there,while it drops to 30 per cent in the capital. The agency 's chairman Gowdat el-Malt focusedin this report on the fact that he has recently cited to the Speaker of the Legislature Fathi Sorour the grave environmental problems created because of the deficiency of this service
The report mentioned the presence of around 20 seriously environmentally-polluted spots in different governorates caused by the discharging of untreated sewage into canals,which represents a major threat to public health as well as to the fish, animal and plant wealth.One of the important points revealed by the report and considered a governmental scandal is the reference to some 29 industrial institutions,most of which are governmental,dumping their untreated industrial waste directly into the Nile.Another potential scandal lies in many samples taken from different water stations nationwide proving not to conform to the set standards in various areas,including the coastal city of Damietta.This report comes to support the widespread media campaign recently organised following the horrifying discovery that many crops were being irrigated with untreated sewage.The Government blamed the farmers,accusing them of violating the condition oftheir land contracts that they should use untreatedsewage in irrigating fruitless trees only.Meanwhile,the report proves early governmental knowledge of the present environmental and health catastrophe from long ago,without any steps being taken to deal with it.So has the Government of the National Democratic Party,whose annual congress has raised the slogan 'Just for You ',considered a solution to such a serious dilemma that touches the life and health of the majority of citizens?
