After five decades without a sustainable source of potable water, residents of Urualla in Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo State, and personnel of the Urualla Divisional Police Headquarters, now have access to clean and reliable water following the commissioning of a solar-powered borehole donated by the Dan Ngerem Sports Foundation.
The project, initiated, funded and completed by the foundation founded by Dan Ngerem, was commissioned on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at the Urualla Divisional Police Headquarters.
The borehole is designed to provide clean water to the police formation and the host community, bringing an end to years of dependence on distant communities and rainwater for basic water needs.
The foundation described the intervention as a landmark project, noting that the Urualla Police Division had lacked sustainable potable water since its establishment in 1976.
“This is the first sustainable portable clean water delivery to NPF Division Hqtrs, Urualla since it was created in 1976, that’s 50 years of dryness broken!” the foundation stated.
It further disclosed that about 800 feet of drilling was required to reach the water source, describing the depth involved as a major undertaking.
“800 feet drilling below the sea level to get water is not a joke!” the foundation added.
Speaking at the commissioning, the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, Audu Bosso, commended Ngerem for the philanthropic intervention and described the gesture as a meaningful contribution to the welfare of the police and the surrounding community.
Bosso charged personnel of the division and members of the host community to protect the facility and ensure that the project continues to serve its intended purpose.
He also encouraged other sons and daughters of the soil to replicate the gesture by supporting projects that address critical needs in their communities.
The Police Community Relations Committee and community leadership also praised the foundation for choosing to intervene in an issue that had affected the area for decades.
The President-General of the community described Ngerem’s intervention as another demonstration of his commitment to community development, noting that through his foundation, he had continued to initiate, complete and donate projects to communities in Urualla and beyond.
Residents of the community expressed excitement over the development, saying the availability of clean water would remove one of the major difficulties they had faced for years.
“We will no longer go to a far neighbouring community to fetch water,” one of the residents said while expressing appreciation for the intervention.
Another resident described the project as a solution to a problem that had persisted for generations, noting that access to reliable water would improve daily life for families in the community.
The Divisional Police Officer of the Urualla Police Division, Thomas Ogugu, also commended the Dan Ngerem Sports Foundation for extending its intervention to the police.
Ogugu said water had been a major challenge at the division since his arrival, explaining that personnel had previously depended on neighbouring communities and rainwater.
He said the situation had made access to water difficult for officers serving at the division, making the newly completed borehole a significant relief.
The DPO further appreciated the foundation for “remembering the police force” and providing a sustainable water source that would benefit both the officers and the community.
The foundation also expressed appreciation to Bosso, alongside senior police officers and other personnel who attended the commissioning.
It described the Ngerem’s intervention as “very strategic and sustainable magnanimity to humanity,” while thanking him and his entire family for supporting the project.
The foundation’s intervention comes as part of its broader activities beyond sports, with the organisation increasingly involved in community development and human empowerment.
Through its initiatives, the Dan Ngerem Sports Foundation has continued to support projects aimed at improving the living conditions of people in communities within Urualla and beyond.
For residents who had spent years travelling to neighbouring communities in search of water, and for police officers who had relied on rainwater and other difficult alternatives, the commissioning represents a major change.
The 50-year water challenge at the Urualla Divisional Police Headquarters and its environs has now given way to a sustainable source of clean water.
As the foundation put it, “Today it’s no longer the absence of water but a presence of solution.”
