MINISTER of Education Anthony Garcia says that poor workmanship could be the reasons of the water leaks at the Couva West Secondary School.
At a news conference at the Ministry of Education, St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain on Tuesday Garcia said, “As soon as the leaks are repaired, something else happens. There have been some very strange occurrences that leave us in a state of bewilderment.
“This was like a recurring decimal.”
He said on Sunday, WASA had fixed all the leaks, but when school opened on Monday, there were leaks again.
Garcia said a leak near the agriculture block had been probed by excavation.
He said, “There is a two-inch water line and instead of having the (plastic) cap at the end of the line, mortar was put there to fill that gap.
“So you’ll understand that when water pressure is increased, that mortar would have been washed away.”
Garcia said, “Boulders were placed under the lines, and because of the weight of the soil, those lines were ruptured. In another case of a leak, there was a big boulder placed on top of a joint which cracked the joint.”
In another case an improvised cap was made from a piece of two-inch pipe wrapped in polythene, he said.
Garcia said, “I’m not going to make any pronouncements with respect to sabotage or any act that was deliberate, but it is necessary for us to bring this to the attention of the public.”
He said extensive repairs were done during the July/August school vacation. Garcia said about $105 million was spent on 194 projects including repairs, refurbishment and maintenance on institutions which enhanced ECCE centres, primary and secondary schools.
