Instability in power supply to Zik hall has been a cause of frowns on the faces of Zikites since resumption in October. This not unconnected with the fact that poor power supply degenerates into poor water supply. With the persistence of these issues, Zik Hall Press Organization (ZHPO) met with some Zikites who aired their opinions. Similarly, the poor condition of bathroom facilities filtered to ZHPO. Some occupants of D block also vented their dissatisfaction on the issue.
Electricity Supply to Zik Hall isn’t Good Enough
A resident of A block, who pleaded anonymity, told ZHPO that electricity isn’t good enough. When a ZHPO correspondent asked him about the state of electricity he said, “our electricity isn’t that good. Sometimes when there’s light in every other place in school, we don’t have light here. Indy will have light, black market will light, which isn’t good enough.” Electricity, oftentimes, is supplied to other halls while Zik is neglected. ZHPO asked him how he manages the situation, he said, “Only one socket works in my room and so I have to charge in the next room.”
Electric power is needed to power phones and laptops which students use in reading as most course texts are in soft copy. As such, the lack of power supply results in less chances of studying. In answer to the question of what he has done about the erratic power supply, the resident stated that he has tried to contact an electrician. In his words, “we can’t bring in engineers ourselves.” However, the respondent stated that he has spoken to his floor representative and action is being taken on it.
A resident of D block who prefers anonymity also spoke to ZHPO on the state of power supply in the hall. “The light has actually been a bit unstable but generally, over ten, it would still be a five for me” was his response to questions concerning his view on unstable power supply in the hall. He believed that power supply is not extremely bad in the hall. When ZHPO asked of his experience when the supply of power was bad, “It was terrible. I wasn’t fine for a long time And I had to go to like some people’s places that are not connected to Zik light where I can be charging my phone”, he said.
Toilets and Bathrooms are not in the Best of States
Another resident of A block who pleaded anonymity spoke on the state of bathrooms and toilets in the block. In his words, “most of the time, people use the toilets anyhow. They won’t even flush.” However, he lauded the efforts of the floor representative in taking care of the toilet. “I acknowledge the efforts of the floor rep. His initiative is very good. When we collect the key from the floor rep to use it the toilet is still fairly okay than in previous times.” he said.
When asked of the bathrooms’ state, he said, “…but the bathroom is something else. The place is like it’s been unkept for a few weeks now. And there’s always water on the floor. So, if you’re wearing crocs, you can fall down at anytime, if you’re not careful enough.” He stated that they manage the bathroom in whatever condition it is. “We’ve been using like that. There’s nothing we can do”, he said.
The D block occupant also spoke about the state of bathrooms on the block. In his words, “Today I had to have my bath on ground floor. It’s like it’s only the ground floor bathrooms that are in good condition now. It’s like we’re in one gigantic digestive system.”The resident lives on the top floor and has to take his bath on the ground floor. He added that water from the top floor leaks to the second and third floor. “Everything is clogged. If you have your bath, it’s flowing out. All the bathrooms are practically out of use except the ground floors”, were his words.
Students on the top floors in D block use bathrooms on the ground floor as the bathrooms on the top floors are in a comatose state. “I can imagine an entire block sharing just a bathroom!” Asking him what has been done to rectify the issues, he said, “I heard it’s being discussed in the Elders Council. I heard they were trying to fix the bathrooms. They came on Saturday night and were trying to do the work, but they didn’t finish it up. The work they did halfway is even clogging up the other bathrooms.”
Another resident of D block, who also pleaded anonymity commented on the state of the bathrooms and toilets on the block. According to him, “the state of the bathrooms is really bad. Not all of them are manageable, like those in the top floor and the ground floor.” Though efforts have been made to repair the bathrooms but it seems the repairs does more damage. “I don’t know maybe it’s the people that are repairing it that are doing shabby jobs. Maybe the hall management should change the people coming to repair it”, he added.
Ibn Yahweh
