Parents of students attending the Kwakwani Primary School are calling on the authorities to fix several problems at the Region Ten school.
One parent who said that she was speaking on behalf of several others but declined to give her name told Stabroek News yesterday that a few days ago; students suffered an outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea. She said that they believe that the poor state of the washroom and water facilities have contributed to this.
The woman explained that the school has a population of 390 students and there are only five toilets for over 200 female students. She said that the toilets cannot flush and the water supply is inadequate and therefore many students have to wait until they get home to use the bathroom but some are forced to use the unsanitary facilities. “These toilets were supposed to be fixed recently…they ain’t fixed. They send some contractors recently…they ain’t do nothing good at all,” she said.
She also noted that the drinking water supply is next to the sanitary block and the students are forced to drink out of a concrete trough that has no tiles. The cleaners also place their buckets there since it is the only point where they can get water, she said.
The parent related that the region had sent some contractors last month after the problems were highlighted but they did not do too much. “The region knows about these things. Is years now we suffering,” she said. She added that the contractors did not do proper work and they hope that they have not been paid. She said that the contractors were supposed to fix the toilets but they have seen no improvement.
She said that the roof of the school had two holes and the contractors were supposed to fix these but now, it has about five holes. The woman said that the jagged, broken railings are also of concern while there is a dire need for furniture.
In addition, the woman said that the Information Technology lab has not been in operation for a while because of the lack of batteries. “Since 2009, the lab has not been used for its purpose,” she said. She added that there are 15 computers in the lab but the lifespan of the batteries had run out and now the computers cannot be used. She said that the regional authorities are aware of the problems but have done nothing. The woman noted that school is supposed to close in two weeks’ time but the students have not started writing their exams as yet because there is no ink to print the papers.
The woman also said that the school was staffed with some “under qualified” teachers from out of the area and they need better ones. Some qualified persons reside in the community, she said.
“We want something better for our students and our children…it is getting worse,” the woman said even as she called on the authorities to visit and take action. She also made an appeal to Minister of Transport, Robeson Benn, who she said attended the school, to intervene.
