The learners and staff at Masisebenze Primary School, in Patensie, have continued to operate without a fence surrounding the school for over a year, which has resulted in unwanted visitors roaming the school grounds and, in one incident, a learner being stabbed by an outsider.
According to the school principal, Nompumelelo Ngxonono, who has been at the school since 1994, the school’s fence was broken down and stolen in February 2021.
A case was opened at the Patensie Police Station and one suspect was arrested, but unfortunately no items were recovered.
Now, more than one year later, the school, which has approximately 154 learners, one admin clerk and three teachers, has continued to operate without a fence, which Ngxonono said has left the school open to unwanted visitors.
“We see people roaming around in the school yard during teaching time, which disturbs the learners and teachers,” said Ngxonono.
“In some cases, learners who have dropped out of school will play in the school yard and the teachers are expected to be security guards and chase them away.”
Ngxonono further said not having a fence has resulted in a major safety hazard for the learners and staff.
“One learner was stabbed last year by an outsider during school hours and multiple burglaries are affecting the school on a large scale,” she said.
“Since the learners play in the school yard over the weekends, vandalism has also become a major problem, with the windows being damaged.”
In addition, Ngxonono said since there was an illegal dump site next to the school, the younger learners often played in the dump site and were exposed to many unhealthy and dangerous elements.
She further said, on windy days, garbage from the dumping site often flew into the school, resulting in the school being filled with plastic bags and various other items.
“The open field alongside the school is unsafe for the learners. We must have a fence to restrict them from playing in this area,” said Ngxonono.
Apart from the issue with the school being without a fence Ngxonono said that since 2009 the school has been without a much-needed security guard and caretaker.
“Since the school does not have a caretaker or security guard, the teachers have been forced to fill these roles and, in some instances, the learners have had to help with picking up garbage in the school yard and ensuring that the school is clean,” said Ngxonono.
She said the Department of Education has been informed about the school being without a fence and has continued to make empty promises about replacing the fence for the last year.
Ngxonono further said that the department was also aware that the school did not have a security guard or a caretaker but has informed the school that there was no supporting staff bulletin yet and they therefore could not hire people to fill these posts.
“We are in desperate need of a fence at our school and our school governing body has therefore decided to approach the media which we hope will resolve the various issues at the school,” she said.
The spokesperson for the Eastern Cape Department of Education was approached for comment but did not respond by the time of going to print on Wednesday.
