Five schools forced to close in service delivery protest
Scores of pupils from five junior and primary schools in Khwenxurha administrative area in Mqanduli were forced out of school for a week by service delivery protesters who threaten to burn their schools down.
Angry community members have told principals from three junior secondary schools, Dilikile, Bacela and Khwenxurha, and the two senior primary schools of Siphendu and Hako, to suspend classes or have their school torched.
They say they closed the schools to gain a quicker response from King Sabata Dalindyebo local municipality.
Their demands include RDP houses, a tarred road, and electricity.
Community member Siviwe Bacela said they had addressed their issues to their two ward committees about developments in their 12 villages, of which eight had no electricity.
“We have projects that we would like assistance in as we are unemployed.
“Also, in our village there is no water and some villages have no electricity even though the installation of cables was done in 2013,” Bacela said.
“We are here today because we have exhausted all means to get the authorities to address our demands.”
Resident Ayanda Joko said the protests would continue until the needs were addressed. “Yes we are worried that pupils will miss out on schoolwork.
“But we want the KSD mayor [Dumani Zozo] to come here and address our demands.
“We drink water with pigs and cows.
“What is most painful here is that we vote and yet no one pays any heed to us.
“We sent the KSD speaker [Notyatyambo Gcingca] our grievances last month.”
Grade 7 pupil Sinewonga Mbiza, who was among the protesters, said he missed going to school. “I want to go back to school. We are far behind in the syllabus as it is.
“It hurts when I see pupils from other villages going to school. But there is nothing I can do because the protest is about what we need.”
“We have had nothing since we first voted in 1994,” said a parent Feziwe Bacela.
“People here live on social grants. My child is at home as we speak and is not going to school.
“Closing the schools seemed a minor action as compared to burning them,” she said.
“We were avoiding burning what we have to get what we want and we do think of opening the schools. But it is said that when one thing fails another succeeds.”
Dilikile SGB member Dumalitshona Bacela said teachers had to turn back home every day as they were not allowed into schools by the protesters.
“We tried to talk to the community members to open the schools but they said that will cost them heavily as they want to be answered. Pupils might fail because of this and we are worried that they will divert to crime as they sit idly at their homes,” he said.
School principal Mvuyelelo Bacela urged the government to intervene so that pupils could go back to class.
Provincial department of education spokesman Malibongwe Mtima condemned the closure of the schools by the protesters.
“Schools must not be closed because of service delivery as at the end of the day it is the pupils who are affected. We appeal to the public to make use of all other channels and forget about closing schools,” said Mtima.
KSD spokesman Sonwabo Mampoza said the municipality had plans to fix roads including Khwenxurha.
“We maintain them from time to time working with ward councillors. The municipality has a smart plan to ensure that services get to the people. There are projects currently under way which include Khwenxurha.
“It is not the intention of the municipality to have any delays,” said Mampoza.
Questions of housing and water had to be directed to the OR Tambo district municipality, he added.
Efforts to get hold of OR Tambo spokesman Ayongezwa Lungisa proved fruitless as his phone went to voicemail.
Mampoza said the municipality was working jointly with Eskom to electrify the areas but Eskom spokesman Zama Mpondwana responded saying the Khwenxurha electricity project was being implemented directly by the KSD municipality.
I want to go back to school. We are far behind in the syllabus as it is Grade 7
pupil Sinewonga