SMK Ulu Baligian students pump water from a small river behind the school for washing and bathing – at times for drinking.
SIBU: The parent-teacher association (PTA) of SMK Ulu Balingian is appealing to the federal government to help put an end to the water woe which is affecting about 700 people in the school.
PTA chairman Lanting Lenggeng said although the water supply problem occurs periodically, it has been going on for more than two years, causing much inconvenience to teachers and students.
Pails for storing water.
He said the situation worsens during dry weather because the school depends much on rain harvesting.
“The school depends heavily on rain harvesting for its daily needs and this can be problematic during dry weather,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.
Lanting related that the submersible pump used by the school to draw water from Balingian river to the reservoir was no longer functioning properly following a short-circuit when an excavator doing construction works along Pan Borneo Highway damaged its main electric cable.
The main water pipe leading to the school, which is located along Pan Borneo Highway, was also damaged during the construction works, he added.
He recalled that the contractor did carry out the repair, but the submersible pump was still not functioning well as expected.
As a short term measure, he said the contractor had provided water supply to the school using tankers for a certain period of time.
Lanting said he had learned that the matter was later brought to the attention of Sarawak Education Department, but only short term action had been taken, such as providing students with bottled drinking water.
Rain harvesting at the principal’s quarters at SMK Ulu Balingian.
“Presently, a Sibu contractor has been delegated by Sarawak Education Department to deliver eight tanks of water to the school for the daily consumption of some 700 people in the school, which is hardly enough.
“Imagine if the lorry breaks down, that will mean no water for the school.”
It is also learned that to conserve water, most of the teachers have to go down to Sibu – some 109 km away – during weekends to do their laundry.
Lanting said the PTA had purchased a water pump to draw water from a small river behind the school for students to do washing and bathing.
There are 460 boarders and 110 daytime students studying in the school.
He lamented: “It is simply too costly as we have to fork out about RM300 weekly or about RM1,200 per month for fuel alone.
“In fact, the PTA together with parents have tried means and ways to resolve the school water supply problem, but could not do much, given the high cost to repair the pump, water pipes and electric cables,” he added.
SMK Ulu Balingian, built in 1984, is located about 30km from Selangau town. Piping at the school has never been changed since.
The school has 53 teachers and nine non-teaching staffers with 60 family members.
Meanwhile, it is learned that some 350 parents will stage a peaceful gathering at the main entrance of the school to get the attention of the federal government to the water supply problem.
Lanting lamented that the school did not have a fixed line and people had to go up the hill near the teachers’ quarters to make calls but the transmission signal was unstable.
“For the Internet, coverage is still quite limited though fibre optic was installed last month,” he said.