School in state of collapse
The institution, with 22 teachers including the principal and 797 learners from grades R to seven, has no admin block. According to informed sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, teachers enjoy no privacy at this school at all.
MIDDELPLAAS – Be it the winter’s chilly weather conditions or the summer rain, teachers at one of the oldest schools in the province, Mpumelelo Primary in the Nkomazi area, endure working under appalling circumstances year-round at a school whose walls are falling apart.
The institution, with 22 teachers including the principal and 797 learners from grades R to seven, has no admin block. According to informed sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, teachers enjoy no privacy at this school at all.
They have nowhere to place their belongings, or an area where they can sit or chat during break or lunchtime.Many times they fall victim to theft, allegedly by learners when they happen to leave their belongings in a classroom.
Each morning those with no classes to teach at a particular time, either sit at the veranda marking scripts while waiting for their turn to utilise a classroom. “One has to check if he or she has a class to teach and if not, we wait in the corridors.
Those with cars sit in them. The situation is not welcoming at all, but what else can we do? We have to work under alarming circumstances,” said the source. “Some classes also have visible cracks, the school is old and needs refurbishment,” added the source.
Walking inside a small room – the principal’s office – one can visibly see large cracks stretching from the ceiling down to the floor. The school is in dire need of a facelift.
Besides being a feeder school to Camalaza High School, the nearby secondary school in the area and other local schools and having produced respectful professionals in various fields, locals and ex-pupils feel they have been sidelined by the ruling government.
This newspaper also learnt that the borehole recently provided at the school by the education department is not functioning well, as it slowly pumps out water.The department of education’s spokesperson, Mr Jasper Zwane responded thus:”The Department has already started with a process to replace 10 classrooms and provide 28 toilets and an administration block for the school in question.
“The submissions referred to above do articulate the need for an administration block at the school. Provision of the admin block is, however, not in the immediate plans given the severity of backlogs in the province and the need to adhere to backlog eradication targets per norms and standards implementation targets.
“The school is currently due to benefit from the Maintenance Programme aimed at addressing 1156 schools (122 in 2015/16, 343 in 2016/17 and 691 in 2017/18) which will be followed by an Upgrade & Additions Programme aimed at addressing infrastructure backlogs in-line with the promulgated Norms and Standards.
The school has been budgeted R16, 3 million for three projects to be implemented in phases between 2016 to 2024:
• Basic Services & Sanitation
• Additional Classrooms and
• Administration Block
“Concerning the non-functional boreholes delivered at the school, this matter shall be investigated and attended to via the Department of Public Works as an emergency repairs project,” said Zwane.
