Two years without water, electricity

By Aruna Lolani 11 July 2017, 12:00AM

Lafulafu Iuni Semisi, from the village of Falevao is humbly asking the government to please visit families in the rural areas and learn what they’re going through. 

Aged 47, Lafulafu and his family struggle with having no electricity or water pipe in his village area. 

“We are lucky that I’m a strong father because I have to walk to fetch water from houses far down the road. 

“We moved up there two years ago because we needed to develop our own family and we have always had this problem. 

Two years is enough; it’s time to ask the government for help. 

“Sometimes I feel sorry for my children who have to fetch water because I have to tend our plantation. 

 “So our work every day is to get water from our neighbours or the village’s tane vai (water tank) and we also have to pay because everything is on the metering system now.”

The family only has one member with a job so the plantation is their only hope. 

“My daughter works but the plantation provides everything else we need,” he said. 

“I’ve planted some taro, bananas, ta’amu and many other crops when we moved up there and when its harvest time I take them down here or to the market.” 

Lafulafu added that it’s not just his family who are facing this problem. 

Probably five families who are developing land up the mountain are going through the same thing. They also don’t have electricity.

“You know, just because we don’t have electricity doesn’t mean we haven’t paid our electricity bill, no, it’s because the power lines don’t reach up to where we are.

 “We use a kerosene lamp and we’re okay with it because that’s what our people used back in the days. 

“Right now, we are just trying to survive on what we already have.”

The father went on to say that he thinks about the future of his children and he hopes they will live a better life than him.

 “We don’t have much but we’re still trying to live on what we have.” 

 “We need electricity but we need water the most especially for my children.

“I just pray that these two basic things will be fixed soon.“

If you want to help out Lafulafu and his family, you can contact him on 7722295, 

By Aruna Lolani 11 July 2017, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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