Fears as robbers target school
A SERIES of robberies and vandalism at Trenance Park Secondary School in Verulam has caused fear among pupils, teachers and staff of the school.
The school governing body said it was “disheartening” that no one has been arrested. It alleged that the department of education was mum about the issue while learning and teaching were being disrupted.
Yolisa Mzamo, an SGB member, said the school was under attack, and everyone was panicking since the exams were taking place.
She said that this month alone, the school had been vandalised and robbed more than twice. Repairing the infrastructure was too much as the school fees were not paid, she said. The latest incident occurred last week.
“Teachers are no longer able to conduct extra classes because the school is no longer safe. The community is also not doing anything to try to assist the school. Instead, we are constantly getting calls at about 2am that there has been a robbery at the school,” she said.
Mzamo said in the past, criminals used the roof and broke the ceiling to get into the offices, and 25 tablets were stolen. Sometimes they would be alerted by the principal to come and see the damage caused by the criminals, she said.
“There was a time when we found the doors broken in classrooms, and equipment all over the floor at the admission office. A case was opened, but there was no feedback,” she said.
Moreover, Mzamo said this was not the only issue at school as some pupils carried weapons, and there were also gangs selling drugs.
“One pupil tried to beat the principal up. There are constant fights in this school or outside, of our pupils fighting over ‘territories’. The worst part is that parents do not even attend parents’ meetings so that this could be discussed,” she said.
At their last parents’ meeting, she said, only two parents showed up, but when there are fights, they come to blame teachers and the principal.
A retired teacher from the school, who did not want to be named, said these incidents date back to five years ago. “It is unfortunate that nothing has been done till now and that the incidents are still taking place.”
Another SGB member, Rose Mthethwa, said the principal was doing everything he can to try to solve the problem. She added that they know that the principal had reported the incidents to the department.
When the Daily News arrived at the school, it was evident that there had been many break-ins. The ceiling boards were patched and the wall where a safe was installed had been repaired. Some doors and burglar bars were still damaged. The fire hose reel safeties around the school were destroyed, and copper pipes had all been stolen – which has been described as a big problem should there be a fire.
The DB main switchboards had been ransacked. Some are in the hallways, which might pose a danger to the pupils.
The computer lab now has no computers. Mthethwa said they initially had 20 computers, which were stolen, and the second time around, they had 25 computers, which were also stolen.
“The last batch of computers we had was 25, and they were all stolen. Unfortunately, the school cannot replace them again as it is costly, and there is a fear that they also would be stolen again,” she said.
The security guards were also victims, she said, because when the criminals come, they first search for them throughout the school. Once they have found them, they tie them up and beat them before doing whatever they want at the school.
In 2020, the sister paper of the Daily News reported on numerous break-ins at the school – at the time, it was the 24th time.
Mthethwa said approximately 30 cases had been reported to the police.
KZN Education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said the issue of security was a problem.
He said schools belonged to communities that they are located in.
“The schools belong and are located within the communities, and as such, should be protected by the communities,” said Mahlambi.
KZN police spokesperson Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo said a case of attempted burglary was opened for investigation at Verulam SAPS. She said: “The complainant alleged that on November 8, at 3.45am, an unknown suspect attempted to steal items at a school in Verulam.”