BOSETU demands answers as corona outbreak hits Sefhare village
Education sector trade union, Botswana Sectors of Educators Trade Union (BOSETU) is demanding answers following the District Health Team in Mahalapye’s relaxation of the laid down strict adherence of COVID-19 preventative protocols resulting in an officer who was placed on isolation, allegedly breaching the protocols, and spreading the virus amongst staff at Sefhare CJSS in Tswapong.
The officer was later confirmed to be COVID-19 positive, together with two additional staff members who also later showed symptoms of COVID-19.
This resulted in fears that the number of cases may be higher at the school and possibly in the village. The two teachers are currently on isolation while awaiting their COVID-19 results.
The three cases have caused panic and worry at Sefhare that the virus may have spread amongst staff and students and even in the village.
Of great worry to teachers was a decision by the District Health team to be selective when dealing with COVID-19 cases in scenarios of big populations such as schools, instead of widening their net for contact tracing as well as closing schools and speeding up efforts to fumigate the school environment.
Initially the District Health team isolated only one officer at the school and didn’t seem bothered about other staff members, while the other two teachers were only isolated days later after showing symptoms associated with COVID-19.
Even then, the rest of the teaching community or the pupils that the teachers interact with in the classrooms on a daily basis have not been put on isolation or tested for the virus, a development that has left the Sefhare JSS community more fearful that the District Health team and the COVID-19 Task Force may have compromised the entire school community with their relaxation of the standards at a time when the virus cases in the country were spiralling out of control and death toll hitting the 100 mark .
BOSETU Secretary General, Tobokani Rari said they took a dim view of the relaxation of the basic COVID-19 precautionary and preventative protocols and the obvious dropping of guard by the health authorities as this ran the risk of exposing members of their union as well as the whole community of Sefhare to COVID-19.
According to Rari, BOSETU had long advocated for teachers to be included in the COVID-19 frontline workers’ category since by their nature they are exposed to COVID-19 risks as they deal with big populations of students in one place on a daily basis.
“There is no other workplace environment which holds pupils in their hundreds; these pupils, being youngsters are naturally highly energetic and not easy to control, hence the uniqueness of the teaching environment in the era of COVID-19, “the Secretary General explained.
Rari added that under normal circumstances, the Sefhare school should have been closed, and all teachers and students tested, while facilities were also fumigated,. However the welfare of the teachers , students and the community seemed not to matter to health authorities anymore, according to BOSETU.
“It would seem the continuation of classes take precedence over the health risks the school community and the village are now exposed to; We condemn this laxity by health authorities that is being displayed at a time when the fast spreading variant of COVID-19 is reported to be in the country, as well as cases of COVID-19 in the country rising rapidly,” Rari said.
Ironically prior to the reopening of schools for the new year , the COVID-19 Taskforce told a tripartite meeting of the Ministry of Education, BOSETU, COVID-19 Task Force that a new variant of COVID-19 found in South Africa had now reached Botswana, and that strict adherence to laid down protocols were the only available preventative measures.
BOSETU would later issue a statement to members (teachers), warning them about the new COVID-19 variant and the need for strict adherence to the preventive protocols religiously.
BOSETU also urged members that where the strict adherence to the preventative protocols is not observed, and therefore their welfare is at risk, teachers should not endanger themselves.