Pit latrines should be outlawed in schools

Aug 23, 2024 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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Kaieteur News – In the 21st century, where nations tout the progress of modern civilization, where skyscrapers pierce the clouds and digital revolutions reshape human interaction, it is nothing short of a national disgrace that in Guyana, kindergartners—the most vulnerable and innocent among us—are still subjected to the indignity of pit latrines.

This is not merely a blemish on the face of our country; it is an indictment of both the current People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration and the former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) coalition. Their collective failure to abolish such primitive facilities in schools is a moral and political crime, one that should shame any government that claims to care for its citizens, let alone its children.

Sixteen years ago, a tragedy that should have been the final nail in the coffin of this archaic practice occurred. A nine-year-old primary school student, Tanesha DeSouza, lost her life in a horrific manner—drowning in the filth of a pit latrine at Santa Rosa Primary School. What a cruel way to die: enveloped in the stink of governmental neglect, abandoned by those whose duty it was to protect her.

In the aftermath of that tragedy, the call was loud and clear: no more pit latrines in hinterland schools. Indigenous organizations such as the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA) and the Guyanese Organisation of Indigenous Peoples (GOIP) demanded that the government install flush toilets in all schools. The opposition at the time, the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), rightfully decried this abysmal state of affairs, pointing out the glaring disparity between schools in the city and those in the hinterland. It accused the then PPP/C government of discrimination against Amerindians.

The stench of that tragedy should have pervaded the halls of power, compelling immediate and decisive action. But here we are, six years later, facing the same abysmal conditions. Where was the resolve to change? Sixteen years has passed, and still, we find ourselves outraged—rightly so—that schools, and kindergarten schools at that, continue to use pit latrines. This failure is not just a failure of infrastructure; it is a failure of morality. It is a failure on the part of both the former APNU+AFC administration and the current PPP/C government, who have both proven themselves incapable of safeguarding the basic human dignity of our children.

What excuse will be offered now? Who will the Ministry of Education blame? Will it pass the buck to the Regional Administration, as has been the norm in the blame-shifting culture of Guyanese politics?

Or will it, for once, accept responsibility for this grotesque neglect? In a country that boasts of being the fastest-growing economy in the world over the past three years, how do we justify the fact that our small kindergarten children still have to use pit latrines?

The problem, however, is not confined to schools alone.  It is national in scale. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) estimated in 2021 that as much as 28% of the population disposes of waste water through pit latrines. This is a staggering figure, one that speaks to a broader systemic failure in our national infrastructure.

The persistence of pit latrines in Guyanese schools is not just a failure of infrastructure; it is a damning reflection of those in power. It is an abject failure to recognize the humanity of our children, to see them as more than just numbers in a growing economy, but as individuals deserving of safety, dignity, and respect. The current and former governments stand equally condemned. It is time for real change, not just words, to ensure that no more children suffer the indignities of the past. In this failure, both governments have failed the nation, and it is the nation’s children who have paid—and continue to pay—the price.

At the very least, public schools should not be certified as fit for human occupancy if they contain pit latrines. It is shocking, to say the least, that in 2019, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) was setting a code of standards for pit latrines. They should have been advocating for their eradication, not their standardization.

Consider the example set by South Africa. In 2018, the President of South Africa announced a plan to eradicate pit latrines across all schools within two years. This was not just a policy decision; it was an acknowledgment of the inherent dignity that every child deserves.

Guyana, too, must embark on a similar path—immediately and decisively. The President should not merely make a speech; he should take strong action, including the rolling of heads, to kick-start this objective. Anything less would be a betrayal of the future of this nation.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

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• A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC), civilization, Coalition, Peeping Tom, People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)

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