Landowners threaten to close Maprik school

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Tuesday 13th December 2011

By PISAI GUMAR
customary landowners of the Maprik Secondary School in East Sepik have threatened to shut the school after authorities ignored their concern over the disposal of waste into a nearby river.
The Kuatgu River serves between 500 and 600 people in the Maprik area and flows down the Wosera area where six villages use water from it for cooking, drinking and washing.
Maira clan leader Kenny Maison said since the establishment of the school in 1982, the landowners had raised their concern with the district, provincial and education authorities to consider the risk of disposing waste into the river.
Maison said the lack of proper facilities to contain the sewerage outflow and continuous disposal of waste for the past 20 years had contaminated the river.
He said that had affected human and aquatic life and resulted in many people being affected by dysentery, cholera and typhoid over the years.
“Nothing was set to contain and manage waste disposal and the school uses that water. If the authorities decide to continue disposing waste into the river, they should set in place proper clean water for the people to use for drinking, cooking and washing,” Maison said.
The school caters for 1,300 students from Wosera-Gawi, Yangoru and Ambunti-Dreikikir each year.
“But the contamination of the river affects human lives and we have to balance all factors,” he said.
The landowners demanded K450,000 compensation from the government, “otherwise we will shut down the school beginning next year”.