TZANEEN – The EFF in the Greater Tzaneen Municipality (GTM), together with the concerned community members of Mawa Block 6 representing Makgoope Primary School, visited the Mopani West district office of the Department of Basic Education on Thursday, May 8.

This follows the ongoing process initiated by the department to close and merge schools across the district.

EFF Cllr Sechaba Malatji said that this gives the impression that the future of children is disregarded.

“We strongly oppose this and state unapologetically that education is the foundation of our nation’s future and must be preserved and promoted at all costs,” he said.

Malatji said they acknowledge that some schools face low learner enrolment due to the current state of many schools in the communities.

“It is the responsibility of both the department and all relevant stakeholders to ensure that public schools provide a safe, conducive, and supportive environment for learning. They rarely engage with school principals regarding teacher shortages or inadequate learning materials. This meaningless engagement shows a lack of genuine concern for the daily struggles faced by our learners and teachers,” added Malatji.

He further said that many classrooms are in poor condition, and when it rains, water leaks into classrooms. In hot weather, learners are exposed to extreme heat due to broken infrastructure.

“The condition of school toilets, such as those at Kelekeshe Secondary School, is disgraceful. Learners often choose to go home rather than use the toilet facilities, which are unsafe and unsanitary. The department’s apparent focus on pass rates for performance bonuses neglects the infrastructural and operational crises that contribute directly to poor learner outcomes,” said Malatji.

The EFF handed over a memorandum of all their concerns to the department and also request that a formal response to these demands must be provided within 30 days.