Irate residents torch schools

PROTEST: UPSET ABOUT DEMARCATION ISSUES

Tribal office, satellite police station and post office were also torched in violence.

Schools have become a soft target for protesters in Vuwani, just outside Thohoyandou, the Limpopo education department said yesterday. This comes after four schools were set alight by irate protesters on Monday night.

Speaking to The Citizen, education spokesperson Naledzani Rasila said the protest action which started on Sunday over demarcation issues has nothing to do with education.

“It is unfortunate that whenever residents are unhappy with

It is unfortunate that whenever residents are unhappy, they would try and compromise the education of our children.

something, they would try and compromise the education of our children. Whenever there is a protest, the schools’ most critical buildings, such as computer rooms and libraries, are often targeted,” Rasila said.

Apart from the schools, a tribal office, satellite police station and post office were also torched in the violence-stricken area.

Some residents initially claimed it was seven schools that were set alight, but speaking to The Citizen, police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Maleka said the official number of schools torched stood at four – three high schools and one primary school. “The damage is extensive,” Maleka said. “The situation remains tense, but officers monitor the area.”

Several roads have also been barricaded with rocks and rubble.

The protest action started on Sunday afternoon, following a report-back meeting on the matter where traditional leaders recently lost a court bid to compel the Municipal Demarcation Board to reverse its decision to merge their area with Malamulele to form a new municipality.

The Citizen has also learnt residents resolved that community spokespersons should not conduct any media interviews.

Meanwhile, the demarcation issue has, in recent months, also seen voter registrations disrupted by residents who don’t want to remain under the Makhado local municipality. –

Naledzani Rasila Education spokesperson