Toilet issue forces Madi schoolgoers to the bush

SANITATION | WASTE DISPOSAL               

After the only toilet they had at the school filled up, the boys of Trala Primary school in Okollo sub-county in Upper Madi have been forced to head to the bush to answer the all-important 'call of nature'.

It is now two years since the pit latrine because unusable and no other one has been constructred.

While some boys go to the bush, others use the nearby toilets of the villagers.

Patrick Abadewo, a Primary Seven (P.7) pupil said they are always at risk of suffering from diseases like cholera.

He said some use the toilets of the girls and teachers.

Emmanuel Afeku, the deputy head of the school, said the school is looking to constructing a temporary toilet since the sub-county and district have failed to extend support to relieve them from the burden.

Benya Ariaka, the LC1 chairman of Parabo village in Okollo sub-county says the issue has been raised several times to the local leaders but no action has been taken.

According to Ariaka, parents are willing to sink a new toilet and provide local materials like bricks and stones to build a new one, but they can't afford to buy cement and pay the skilled laborers to get the job done.

Marino Acia, the district education officer of Arua, says if the toilets are lined ones, the parents and the school management need to secure some money from the Universal Primary Education Fund and be able to construct a new one.

"It took time for the toilet to get filled up and the school should have prepared early to establish a new one or empty the filled up one," he said.