Storm damaged school receives $20k
THE Ministry of Home Affairs and Lotteries and Gaming Board has handed over $20 000 to Dukwe Primary School in Mangwe District, Matabeleland South, which was recently destroyed by a hailstorm, to repair the damaged infrastructure.
The damage has forced Early Childhood Development (ECD) pupils at the school to learn from grass-thatched huts ever since their classrooms were damaged at the beginning of the rainy season in October last year.
Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Cde Obedingwa Mguni who is also the National Assembly Member for Mangwe constituency handed over the money to the school and urged school authorities to put the money to good use.
“As the MP of the area I took the plight of this school to my ministry which in turn availed $20 000 for repairs. This money is specifically for buying building material and hiring labour where necessary and not anything else. I would like to urge the school authorities to ensure that this money isn’t diverted to other purposes. It’s not proper for pupils to be exposed to harsh learning conditions such as those being faced by some pupils at this school,” he said.
Cde Mguni urged all schools to introduce non-formal adult lessons for parents to ensure that they realised the importance of education. He said the district was lagging behind in valuing education because some parents were not sending their children to school, especially after they completed their primary education.
Cde Mguni said education was crucial in fighting poverty within the district.
He said efforts were being put in place to secure funding to repair all the schools in the district which were recently destroyed by rains.
The headmaster of the school, Mr Khumbulani Ncube, said the donation would go a long way in alleviating challenges as ECD pupils were now learning in grass-thatched huts because of limited learning space. He said the school had attempted to raise funds to repair the damaged classrooms but little progress had been made.
“We have been struggling to conduct lessons especially with the incessant downpours because the roofing of most classroom blocks was damaged. ECD pupils are now learning from grass-thatched huts and we have been sending them back home each time rain clouds build up in the sky,” said Mr Ncube.
Three classroom blocks at Dukwe Primary School were damaged by a hailstorm in October last year affecting 261 pupils out of an enrolment of 403. Minister responsible for Policy Co-ordination and Promotion of Socio-Economic Ventures in the President’s Office, Ambassador Simon Khaya Moyo recently donated R3 000 towards repairing the school. Home Affairs Deputy Minister, Cde Obedingwa Mguni also donated 1 000 exercise books to the school.
Tjingababili Primary, Ngwanyana Primary, Silima Primary, Bulu Primary, Mqokolweni Secondary, Tahangana Secondary, St Francis Secondary, Makuzeze Primary and Khahlu Primary Schools also in Mangwe District were affected by a hailstorm that hit the area in November. MPILO