Family relies on rainwater

By Nefertiti Matatia 10 January 2018, 12:00AM

For 19 years, Onosa’i Galutino and her family in Satuimalufilufi have never experienced the joy of having water or electricity.

The mother of 12 spoke about the obstacles that she encounters up until today, especially when no water means not being able to carry out daily chores.

“Our hope for water relies on the rain; if it rains then we are blessed. There is always a certain amount of water that we spend every day. We never overuse anything because we know we are so far away from everything and people we could seek help from.”

“There are so many of us and the majority of people in my family are children, so as a parent, when there is not much water left, we give all the water we can to satisfy our children and think about ourselves later on,” she said.

Ms. Galutino added she tried looking for help. The 47-year-old says they now have a water tank, but they still need a pipe to reach their home.  

It is not just the scarcity of water and electricity, but also how far they have to walk home every day.

There is no proper road that leads to their home so they cannot catch the bus or even get a lift from other cars. They are left with no choice, but to walk, and the only shortcut is through Manono.

Her biggest fear is walking her five kids to catch the bus so they can attend school.

“My kids wake up at 4 a.m. to get dressed for school. It is very hard because we do not have any light along the pathway which is the only shortcut we have for my children to walk to go to school,” she added.

Both Mrs. Galutino and her husband are unemployed, but they rely heavily on the land for survival. None of their kids work as well.

“We sell coconuts, yam, bananas, pineapples and many other things we find on our land so we could earn a living. Life is hard, but if we do not work, my kids would not eat and we would not be able to make it the next day.”

By Nefertiti Matatia 10 January 2018, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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