Masvingo Bureau
Normalcy returned to Mukaro High School in Gutu yesterday after pupils demonstrated against

authorities over water and food on Thursday.
Water supply improved slightly and the authorities pledged to address the quality of food. Students at the girls’ high school run by the Catholic Church reported for classes at 7:20 am, but gave the school authorities a two week ultimatum to respond to their grievances or risk another protest. When The Herald visited the school yesterday morning, the pupils were in classes and water was filling up in tanks that had been positioned at strategic points around the school.

Mukaro High School, Mukaro Primary School, the Father’s House for Catholic priests, and the seminary for training priests and nuns all get their drinking water from boreholes. Water for washing and other chores is drawn from Chimwamombe Dam.

However, there are only three functional boreholes that serve a population of 1 000 people and recurrent powercuts have reportedly hampered reliable pumping of clean water.
By yesterday afternoon the school had already installed several 1000-litre plastic tanks to improve the water supply especially at the hostels. The pupils welcomed the development. Mukaro High School headmaster, Mr Acquanos Chizhunga, said the school will address the issues raised by the girls. He admitted that some of their grievances were genuine. “We have already installed several plastic water tanks to improve the supply of clean water at the school.

“Water was indeed a problem which was mainly caused by electricity outages, but we have a back up generator and we will increase the number of plastic tanks so that water is available in all areas.

“As for food, we are also going to improve and I have already been to the school canteen where I asked for them to revise their meal timetable so that we respond to the needs of children. We are working to rectify all the problems,” he said. Mr Chizhunga conceded that he was caught by surprise after the girls sneaked out. He said the school will rectify the laxity in security.

“We are quite relieved that none of the students was harmed when they woke up at night and walked to Mpandawana. I want to admit that in terms of security we were very lax as a school and we are in the process of rectifying the problems by increasing the number of guards,” said Mr Chizhunga.
Sources at the school said Mukaro Mission — covering the high and primary schools, piggery, seminary, Sister’s convent, Fathers’ House for priests, the church complex and teachers’ houses has only two guards.

“There is a serious lack of security here, only one guard was on duty when the students sneaked out and there is no way he could have detected them because the institution is too big for one person to guard at night. They have to beef up security,” said one of the staff members who declined to be named.
The teacher said the pupils were justified to take that action.

“They are now running around and a new water tanks are being built. These problems were raised by students a long time ago and they kept on ignoring them. Can you imagine that sometimes workers at the school dining hall would be ordered to go to the villages and carry buckets of water on their heads to supply water to this school; that is unheard of,” added the staff member