Given that we are in the year 2024, nearly five years into oil production and with an average annual input into the budget from petroleum revenues of U$1b – $200b – there is surely unanimous agreement that pit latrines at schools should be a thing of the past.
That they still exist in parts of the hinterland and perhaps elsewhere is an indictment of the relevant regions, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development and the government as a whole.
The matter came to the fore again when the Alliance For Change (AFC) made a foray into Region Seven. Party Leader Nigel Hughes told a meeting at Linden on August 17 that party members were shocked when they saw the pit latrines being used and even more appalled to learn that children of kindergarten age had to use them.
What brought further outrage, Mr Hughes said, was the residents lamenting that given the number of students using the facilities daily, the latrines got filled quickly and required moving “further and further away from the school”. Currently, he said, residents were bemoaning the fact that they are running out of space and would have to go even further.
The intervention by the AFC triggered the predictable tirade from the Ministry of Education which should not sully these columns except to say that if the ministry had really been conscientious about the welfare of all children, the latrines would have long been erased from existence. It seems that in relation to the Phillipai Primary School a plan does exist for a new sanitary block but has not yet been actioned.
It is another example of the misplaced priorities of this government and its failure to take care of the little things that mean a lot to the quality of life of the people in all parts of the country and particularly the hinterland.
At some point in 2020 or certainly 2021, some thinking person in the government should have alighted on this matter and devised a plan to seal pit latrines at schools for good. Let’s say even if it were 100 sanitary blocks it would be a drop in the bucket of the runaway, big-ticket, prestige expenditure that has taken control of this government. We are apparently now to have a high-span bridge over the Berbice River. Perhaps there may still be a feasibility study or an environmental impact assessment of this venture despite the fact that an invitation for pre-qualification of contractors is already out.
Back to the latrines. Who in this government – or across all tiers of government – can give an account of how many pit latrines are in existence in schools and how many of the current sanitary blocks are in decrepit condition? Perhaps President Ali should urgently mandate such a study or hopefully the heads of the schools suffering such indignities will make it known to the authorities.
No more time should be lost or wasted on this problem. The children of this nation must have far better conditions as it can be well-afforded. It is also a problem that this government has been aware of for at least 15 years. In 2008 when a child fell into a school latrine at Santa Rosa and died, the then Minister of Education Shaik Baksh, now in charge at the Guyana Water Incorporated and Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai who is still in that position had their say.
Ms Sukhai had said in 2008 that her government would examine child-friendly infrastructure in schools but because the country was still developing economically, it was “still grappling with removing ourselves from the level of a developing country and moving towards a higher level… which is a challenge to the government.”
She added that the government, “may not be able to address the conversion of all pit latrines to flush toilets or what we call it – water closets, but definitely I think we would have to consider for the future, making safer facilities available to our children.”
It is unclear how much more money or time Ms Sukhai’s government requires.
Mr Baksh had said that his ministry did not intend to phase out the use of pit latrines in schools since they were internationally accepted as proper sanitary disposal. He had added though that maybe in another few years the issue would be addressed but it would be a very expensive exercise. More than a few years under the PPP/C has elapsed and expense is no longer a consideration.
Enough has been said. This government must get rid of all pit latrines at schools and do so with efficiency.
