“Soon”. This promise of a new school made by the provincial department of education is wearing thin for a popular primary school catering for 2000 pupils in Ugie.
The gardens are good, and staff seem committed, which is born out by parents from surrounding poor communities sending thousands of their children to be educated here.
But after almost four decades, the school structure – prefabricated walls – are falling apart.
Dispatch visited the decrepit ET Thabane Primary School in Ntokozweni location this week.
It comprises 34 of these crumbling prefab edifices. Yet the school is forced to cram 60 pupils into some.
In winter the wind whistles through the broken windows and many holes in the walls. Structurally, this is one of the oldest prefab schools in the province. It was knocked together 38 years ago.
Official promises of a new school “soon” are also getting long in the tooth; they have been mouthed for five years.
School governing body chairman Victor Foko said government was doing nothing about the dilapidated school.
“With the current leadership of the school, the school has managed to attract pupils from as far as Maclear and other small towns. But our problem is the building.
“These prefabs were built in 1980. The roof leaks, there are holes in the walls. It is a nightmare for pupils studying in winter. Every time we question the department about the promised building they tell us that the building will be built soon,” said Foko.
While the school yard was beautiful the building was a danger to pupils.
“We have new toilets which took two years to complete even though the project was meant to take four months.
“We have a shortage of furniture and textbooks and desperately need a new school building,” Foko said.
School principal Kapa Majola said the school catered to 2000 pupils from the impoverish Ugie location and small towns around Ugie.
“Since 1980 there has been no provision of classrooms.
“The education department sent its officials to the school on numerous occasions but all those visits yielded nothing,” he said. “In some classrooms meant to accommodate 20 pupils we have 60 pupils due to non-availability of space.”
Provincial education department spokesman Loyiso Pulumani said he had sent Dispatch’s questions to the infrastructure department and would reply as soon as he received information. — tembiles@dispatch.co.za
Popular Ugie school left to rot since 1980
The gardens are good, and staff seem committed, which is born out by parents from surrounding poor communities sending thousands of their children to be educated here.
But after almost four decades, the school structure – prefabricated walls – are falling apart.
Dispatch visited the decrepit ET Thabane Primary School in Ntokozweni location this week.
It comprises 34 of these crumbling prefab edifices. Yet the school is forced to cram 60 pupils into some.
In winter the wind whistles through the broken windows and many holes in the walls. Structurally, this is one of the oldest prefab schools in the province. It was knocked together 38 years ago.
Official promises of a new school “soon” are also getting long in the tooth; they have been mouthed for five years.
School governing body chairman Victor Foko said government was doing nothing about the dilapidated school.
“With the current leadership of the school, the school has managed to attract pupils from as far as Maclear and other small towns. But our problem is the building.
“These prefabs were built in 1980. The roof leaks, there are holes in the walls. It is a nightmare for pupils studying in winter. Every time we question the department about the promised building they tell us that the building will be built soon,” said Foko.
While the school yard was beautiful the building was a danger to pupils.
“We have new toilets which took two years to complete even though the project was meant to take four months.
“We have a shortage of furniture and textbooks and desperately need a new school building,” Foko said.
School principal Kapa Majola said the school catered to 2000 pupils from the impoverish Ugie location and small towns around Ugie.
“Since 1980 there has been no provision of classrooms.
“The education department sent its officials to the school on numerous occasions but all those visits yielded nothing,” he said. “In some classrooms meant to accommodate 20 pupils we have 60 pupils due to non-availability of space.”
Provincial education department spokesman Loyiso Pulumani said he had sent Dispatch’s questions to the infrastructure department and would reply as soon as he received information. — tembiles@dispatch.co.za
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