Protest over scholar transport

Insufficient funds to transport about 30 000 children, Bhisho says

THOUSANDS of pupils in the Eastern Cape who qualify for the government’s scholar transport programme will have to continue walking to school because the provincial transport department has insufficient funding. This emerged in the provincial legislature yesterday when Transport MEC Weziwe Tikana was grilled by the portfolio committee about her department’s budget for the 2017-18 financial year.

About 30 000 of the 110 000 pupils eligible for taxpayer-funded transport will continue to walk to and from their schools.

Tikana told the committee her department could not make any adjustments to the R462-million budget allocation to be spent on scholar transport.

Instead they needed more money from the provincial Treasury if the 30 000 pupils were to be included in the scholar transport programme.

Tikana said her department’s attempts to lobby the Treasury for additional funding had drawn a blank, leaving the department with no choice but to ferry only 77 774 of the 110 000 pupils.

“We cannot accommodate more learners unless we get additional funds.”

This comes as two groups of parents clashed at Kuyga Intermediary School yesterday when one side tried to force pupils who receive transport to join their protest.

But the parents whose children receive scholar transport to Kuyga Intermediary and other schools, locked the gate.

After a lengthy stand-off, police and the parents from both sides gathered at the Kuyga Community Hall where they were addressed by ANC regional secretary Themba Xathula, who was contacted by protesting parents to resolve the issue.

Pupils who live in Kuyga are meant to get scholar transport to Colleen Glen Primary School, Rocklands Primary School, St Albans Primary School, Island Reserve Primary School, Yellowwoods Farm School and Van Stadens Primary School.

Momo Mpolose, a parent whose child gets scholar transport to Rocklands Primary, said the department had stopped transporting pupils to St Albans Primary and Van Stadens Primary earlier this year

“We cannot have a situation where these parents prevent our kids from attending class. It is uncalled for,” she said.

Thabile Mlalandle, who was part of the group that wanted to stop teaching, said they wanted help in their fight for scholar transport. “But when we got there, the gates were locked and the other group of parents were not sympathetic to the plight of our children who are missing out.”

Speaking at the Kuyga Community Hall, Xathula said Education MEC Mandla Makupula was misled by officials in the city on the seriousness of the scholar transport shortage. “He is not being told the truth.”

Makupula could not be reached for comment yesterday while education spokesman Malibongwe Mtima said they were aware of the challenges.

On Monday, eight Colleen Glen Primary School teachers were held hostage for more than seven hours when angry parents locked them inside a classroom due to scholar transport issues.

The hostage drama was triggered when more than 250 schoolchildren living in the Kuyga area but attending school in Colleen Glen, were stranded without transport.