Kuyasa Primary School in Kuyasa, Khayelitsha, was temporarily closed after parents protested on Thursday 20 August at the school premises demanding that the Western Cape Department of Education to fix a sewerage pipe burst on the school premises. Classes have been suspended since Friday 21 August until further notice.
Officials meet to resolve Kuyasa school closure
On Monday 24 August, Western Cape Department of Education officials from Metro East Education District, together with the leadership of the Khayelitsha Development Forum (KDF) and the School Governing Body (SGB), held a special meeting on the school premises on Monday morning to try to resolve the impasse. Meanwhile, irate residents blockaded the school entrance, singing struggle songs and demanding that the Western Cape Department of Education fix the mess.
Department vows to repair sewer pipes
After the meeting, which took almost two hours, the circuit manager for Circuit 1 in the Metro East Education District of the Western Cape Education Department, Noloyiso Mtimba-Dube, apologised to the parents for what their children went through at the school. She vowed that the department would take responsibility and ensure that the sewer pipes would be repaired. She said they would decide on Tuesday 25 August when classes would resume.
“We are hoping that our apology is accepted. Today (Monday 24 August), people from the department will come to assess the problem. They will give feedback to the head office. Tomorrow morning (25 August), we will come again to assess if there is any progress. We want all the relevant government departments to come on board to ensure that they fix the problem,” said Mtimba-Dube. She emphasised that they would decide on Tuesday 25 August when classes would resume.
SGB demands permanent solution for Kuyasa Primary School
SGB deputy chair Thandiswa Bolani described the situation at the school as terrible. She said staff members and learners are getting sick because of the standing dirty water inside the school premises. She said Grade 7 learners had relocated to the school hall because of the unbearable mess in front of their classrooms. “Since 2019, the school has been facing a similar problem. The department fixes the sewage drains, but they burst again after a few weeks. We want a permanent solution to this predicament,” said Bolani.
Speaking on behalf of the KDF, Makhaya Jezile said all they needed was for the learners to go back to class. However, he said they were content with the department’s reaction, adding that they were hopeful the department would fix the problem.
