Pollution in Nigeria’s revered Osun river fails to deter devotees

By Seun Sanni

OSOGBO, Nigeria, Aug 10 (Reuters) – Edaoto Agbeniyi, a local musician, has been going to the Osun river which flows through the Osun-Osogbo forest to worship since his childhood, believing the water to be safe and pure.

But things changed in 2018 when the river, a UNESCO Heritage site revered for its cultural and religious significance among the Yoruba-speaking people predominant in southwestern Nigeria, began to turn milky.

The river, a major tourist attraction, has been found to contain toxic metals including mercury and lead, which campaigners say is the result of gold mining activities that began the same year.

The contamination has drawn the ire of devotees and affected tourism earnings, but it has not stopped worshippers from coming.

Thousands of people turned up for the Osogbo annual festival at the river which ended on Saturday.

“I am angry, sad and it is very worrisome that the government of this state has been so lackadaisical at attending to the purification of that water,” Agbeniyi told Reuters.

“The contamination won’t pollute the spiritual essence of the river,” he said.

Ajoke Adekoya, another devotee agreed: “My own perspective is stay where you find peace. This is where my prayer is being answered, that is why I am here … I will come again next year.”

Anthony Adejuwon, team lead at Urban Alert, an Osun-based advocacy group, told Reuters their scientific research uncovered huge deposits of heavy metals such as mercury, lead and cyanide in the river.

“People from far and wide will continue to flock to the Osun river due to its traditional and cultural significance. However, the onus is on the Osun state government, the National Museum and Monument Commission and other stakeholders to ensure the safety of the river,” Adejuwon said.

The government last year announced a cleaning exercise but the river remains polluted, according to devotees and civil society organisations.

(Reporting by Seun Sanni; writing and additional reporting by Ope Adetayo; editing by Clelia Oziel)

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