Kitcharao, Agusan del Norte -- The old and leaky water system in Brgy. San Roque here which made the people thirsty of safe water for long years is now refurbished bursting with fresh potable water.
This after the local government of Kitcharao and the Department of Agriculture – Mindanao Rural Development Program (DA-MRDP) equally shared the investment of close to P4 million pesos for the project.
“Water is a basic necessity, that’s why it’s the priority project of my administration,” said mayor Aristotle Montante.
MRDP program director Lealyn Ramos said potable water supply is one of major projects under MRDP earmarked with around US$4.6 million.
“Unsafe household water is counterproductive, it costs us time and money. That’s why it remains as the priority need in rural Mindanao and the program pro-actively respond to that by putting it among our major projects,” Ramos said.
Refurbishing the bad and old
The old water system was in real bad condition. Its intake box has seepages; the pipelines were bursting and leaking, making it susceptible to contamination; and the water pressure was low. While the water barely reached the community and met the growing demand, water-borne diseases in the community was also observed high.
Communal faucets no longer give enough water especially during peak hours. If they have to fetch water, it will take them 45 minutes to reach the nearest water supply. People are also forced to buy commercially packaged water for drinking which entails additional expense on every household.
The rehabilitation of the water system included construction of a 67.48 cubic meter reservoir and chlorination tank, the replacement of the intake box and the main pipelines, installation of 60 units communal faucets and rerouting and replacement of distribution pipelines to better serve the community.
Now serving 2,203 populations in 360 households in Brgy. San Roque including the San Roque Elementary School, the renovated facility promoted proper hygiene in the community as they are now back to using water-sealed toilets instead of dumping human wastes in farmland and the nearby lake.
Neighboring barangays also come to avail of the clean and safe water as there is still insufficient water supply in other areas of the municipality.
More water projects on the way
With the positive response from the community, the local government is preparing to install new water facility in other Barangays in town.
“We are now preparing the new water project that will cover five more barangays including the poblacion area,” the mayor said.
“Despite the limited resources and costly investments, local leaders should spend on projects that are beneficial for the people. Local governments should not be dependent and wait for national government to fund projects for them,” he said
“And we capitalize on the fifty percent counterpart of MRDP,” he added.
Thankful school
Michael Tadulan, an alumnus and now grade 6 teacher of San Roque Elementary School, said that since his elementary years, he could not remember the school having its own water facility.
“Our pupils now are lucky since there is ready accessible clean and safe water in the campus. Unlike years back when I was a pupil here, we have to go out of the campus to fetch water,” Tadulan said.
“It’s necessary to have water in the classrooms, so prior to the installation, pupils are exposed to high risk in fetching water outside the campus because we are near the National highway,” he added.
Today, two faucets were installed inside the campus.
“As a resident and a teacher, I am so thankful that we became beneficiaries of the program of the Department of Agriculture. So I encourage my community to protect this project and conserve water,” Tadulan said.
He also added that there is a need to educate the community to ensure that the water system would last.
Community Mobilization
The barangay council has agreed to have the facility managed by the Barangay Water and Sanitation Association (BAWASA). Monthly bills of P15 per month will be imposed to raise more revenues to sustain the project.
“We set rules and regulations which among others state prohibition of illegal tapping and doing laundry in near the faucet,” said BAWASA Chairman Danilo Bravo.
“Every member is also asked to guard the faucet installed near each residence,” Bravo added.
With the reduced time for fetching water, Bravo said “we expect our community will be more productive and children to have plenty of time for their studies. So I sincerely thank the government for their efforts.”
With the refurbished potable water system, life is now more refreshing for the San Roque folks.
