Delayed school toilet project poses health hazard for pupils, say parents
Blocked toilet bowls, broken ceilings and wooden planks strewn about the property.
This is what greets pupils at Kwelerha Public School, where a three-day project to renovate toilets has turned into weeks of inaction.
According to school governing body deputy secretary Vuyani Mateyisi, the school premises have become a health hazard.
Mateyisi, who accused the governing body of being divided, said the company meant to renovate the toilets had been paid the full amount yet the job had not been done.
Education department spokesperson Malibongwe Mtima said the department had handed over new toilets to the school in 2015 and that if construction was taking place “it could be a community-led project”.
Mtima said inspections by public works officials had taken place five years ago when the school received the toilets from the department.
Mateyisi said the current toilet project had been given to a company not known to parents and some governing body members.
He said sanitation was not up to standard and the school, which was a beneficiary of the school nutrition programme “makes children eat with their hands or even a ruler”.
The Dispatch contacted the principal of the school, identified as Ms Mbawuli, who referred the Dispatch to the governing body. She placed the call on speaker as governing body members were in her presence.
One of the governing body members, who did not identify herself, accused Mateyisi of not consulting with the governing body before taking the story to the media.
When asked to comment on the health conditions and state of the school, the woman said: “I would appreciate it if you don’t ask me any more questions and tell Mr Mateyisi to come to us first.”
Mateyisi said subsequent to him exposing the “worrying” health conditions of the school to the Dispatch, he had been served with a suspension letter on Monday.
“Our children continue to go to school where the conditions are a health risk to them. The project to renovate these toilets was meant to take three days, yet here we are today. Nothing has been completed,” he said.
“The ceiling of the toilet block has a gaping hole. The toilets are not usable as the sewerage pipes are not fully functioning. Children don’t wash their hands as regularly as they are supposed to as the sinks are not working, yet they eat with their hands.”
Nompumezo Zozoba, who has two children at the school, said: “Nothing is good at the school, but we take our children there because we want them to get an education. The dirty toilet bowls are on the school premises. Nothing has been done about that.”
Another parent, Onela Fubu, said parents had to make sure children carried sanitisers to school as there were no facilities for pupils to wash their hands.
“As parents we have reported our grievances to Mr Mateyisi because we can see that our children ’ s health is at risk at the school,” she said.