Kupang's dirty water business

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Tue, 08/28/2007 1:45 PM | Opinion

In your article entitled ""Diarrhea affects hundreds of kids"", (The Jakarta Post, Aug. 24), you reported that more than 100 children under the age of five have suffered from acute diarrhea after drinking contaminated water in Kupang city, East Nusa Tenggara.

What your article did not disclose was that the clean water supply from city-owned water company PDAM has been insufficient for the last decade, despite the fact that enough money has been allocated by the city to cover the costs of their services.

Money from the water budget seems to be spent improperly every year. Kupang does not have even the simplest water treatment plant, while poor maintenance has caused the deterioration of old PDAM infrastructure for years.

The result is that people have to buy water from tanker trucks that has been pumped from highly polluted rivers and wells.

Several tests have shown this water is not fit for human consumption. But it's still being sold by the Kupang city administration.

It is no wonder that so many people are getting sick, especially the young. The large fleet of tanker trucks is owned by well-connected people.

Meanwhile, people who can afford bottled water don't get sick.

The status quo of the water supply business has been kept unchanged for years to allow these tanker-truck owners to continue to make a lucrative profit.

The newly elected mayor of Kupang, Daniel Adoe, has said the improvement of the water supply is one of his development priorities.

But his first month in office has not been impressive. Most Kupang residents still have to quench their thirsts with polluted water.

HENRY MANOE
Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara

Comments (0) | Post comment

A | A | A |