Schools not spared in unrest
● Nosihle Ndlovu, 11, loves nothing more than putting on her uniform and going to school at Golden Steps, in Ndwedwe near Verulam, north of Durban.
But for the past week, she and her 216 fellow pupils have had to miss out on lessons after their school, which offers vocational training for intellectually disabled pupils, was all but destroyed in civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal.
At least 137 schools in the province suffered damage during riots following the imprisonment of former president Jacob Zuma.
Hundreds of looters ransacked Golden Steps, destroying and torching classrooms, administration blocks and the school’s two buses.
Samukelisiwe Ndlovu, chair of the school governing body, said the vandalism and destruction of the school was heartbreaking.
“They really hit us where it hurts because many children attending the school come from this area. They get meals, guidance and proper education on a daily basis. Every parent who has a child at the school will tell you that they see visible progress with their kids because of the activities taught in the classrooms,” said Ndlovu, Nosihle’s mother.
Principal Anesh Singh said: “The pupils have been robbed of their right to education. All the electronic, visual and computer equipment installed in the school was taken. This is specially adapted equipment for a special school.”
A brand-new bus, with modifications that cost more than R3m, was destroyed.
Radha Roopsingh Primary School in KwaDukuza on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast, which is 64 years old, had six classrooms and two offices vandalised and burnt.
Acting principal Mano Naidoo said: “I have been teaching in this school for 31 years. When I came to see this, my heart was sore … to burn down the school is another level.”
The school was able to obtain eight prefab classrooms from the provincial education department to ensure teaching will resume when primary schools reopen tomorrow.