Naqara market vendors appeal for public convenience

Market vendors in Naqara, Taveuni, are renewing calls for a public restroom, saying the lack of basic sanitation facilities continues to inconvenience residents, shoppers and visitors.

Vendor Adi Ana Aliti said the community had been requesting a public restroom for years, but their appeals had yet to receive a response.

"For years, we have been requesting that a public restroom be built in Taveuni because there is currently none available," she said.

Ms Aliti said several requests had been submitted to relevant authorities, but no action had been taken.

"We have repeatedly raised this concern and asked for one to be constructed, but it seems like our pleas have fallen on deaf ears," she said.

She said people needing to use a restroom while in Naqara were often forced to pay $1 to use facilities at a nearby business.

"In the 54 years that I have lived in Taveuni, there has never been a proper public restroom facility for residents and visitors to use," she said.

Ms Aliti said the absence of a public restroom was surprising given Taveuni’s reputation as Fiji’s Garden Island and its popularity among visitors.

"We are not asking for something unreasonable; we are simply requesting a basic service that will benefit the entire community," she said.

Another market vendor, Karesi Materega, said the lack of toilet facilities created daily challenges for vendors, shoppers and travellers.

"We have to hold our urine because there is nowhere to go," she said.

"There are elderly ones and the young ones and not having a convenience is an issue."

Ms Materega said the situation became even more difficult during wet weather, with vendors spending long hours at the market without access to proper sanitation facilities.

The vendors said they hoped authorities would respond to their long-standing request by constructing a clean, safe and accessible public restroom for the community.