The Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature has unanimously adopted a motion without notice from the Democratic Alliance (DA) to prioritise safety at schools. This was after it came to light that the Provincial Department of Education is currently underspending their infrastructure grant with R120 million while some schools in the province do not even have fences for safety of learners and teachers.
The DA tabled the motion today (Tuesday) during a virtual sitting of the Mpumalanga Legislature. We wanted to bring to light that schools like Rietkol Primary in Eloff, Victor Khanye Local Municipality, have been without a fence for years to protect the learners, teachers, infrastructure as well as their digital equipment.
In April last year, the DA laid a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) asking them to investigate why Rietkol Primary School has not been fenced for years which compromises the safety of learners. This complaint was also forwarded to the Mpumalanga Department of Education.
The SAHRC responded in a letter dated 23 August 2024 stating that they are committed to liaise with the department to prioritise the fencing of the school in this current financial year of 2024/2025.
The DA reminded the house that it is of great importance to ensure the safety of our learners and teachers at schools. Learners can only be taught in an environment where they feel safe. Teachers can only be effective if they do not have to focus the whole time on the safety of their learners. Schools that have little to no fencing are very likely to become an easy target for criminal activities which could lead to infrastructure breakdown.
The DA also requested education MEC, Cathy Dlamini and her department to use their infrastructure grant to its fullest and stop sending it back to treasury as our schools and learners feel the brunt. They must maintain and fix schools, and not give our money back to treasury where it is directed to other provinces.