An active community member and one of the first students of Elijah Mango College of Higher Education, Make Mary Mochekoane, said she is heartbroken to see the institution deteriorating.

Mochekoane was one of the 200 students who were enrolled at the college when it first started operating in 1986. “We had our first classes while the finishing touches were being done. Sometimes we listened to the construction workers hammering something in the next room. The place was so beautiful, well-structured and unique. I felt proud to attend and be a product of this state-of-the-art school. We were still expecting more teachers or other professions to be produced from this institution,” she said.

“I cannot even explain how my heart breaks every time I hear anything or even see something bad being done at the college, such as the vandalism and looting due to negligence.”

Mochekoane became an educator after completing her diploma in 1988. She taught at Vulindlela Secondary School and Siligane Secondary School, and retired in 2000 to pursue politics.

ALSO READ: Elijah Mango College’s future hangs in the balance

She implored the government to repurpose the college. “We have a shortage of schools for children with disabilities in Mpumalanga, and here we have a huge facility that can assist to curb that challenge. How do we allow this institution to be neglected? It is a waste of resources.”

Mochekoane said she is part of a group of alumni of this college who came together in 2020 to find ways to elevate the school to its previous glory, but without luck due to a lack of engagement with the government. She joined the cleaning campaign conducted last Wednesday in a bid to restore a bit of its dignity.