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Section 27: Northern Cape Department of Education comes up with a plan for closed schools

Angie Motshega
Angie Motshega

22nd October 2014

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SECTION27 released a press statement about Khiba Junior Secondary School, a school in the Northern Cape that had been closed without a plan for the education of learners.

The school was badly polluted with asbestos and action from the Department of Education to prevent the ongoing health risks to children and staff at the school had been sought for many years. When action was finally taken, it was in the form of the closure of the school (by the Department of Labour) without any plan for the ongoing education of learners.
It is only after the threat of litigation by the School Governing Body (represented by SECTION27) that the Department of Education has put together a plan.  While imperfect, is to be welcomed as it will see an end to the violations of the rights of learners at Khiba to education as well as health if implemented.
The Department of Education has undertaken the following:
·      In the short-term, to cover exposed asbestos on the grounds of the school with sand and to paint/plaster the walls that are deteriorating and shedding asbestos fibres; to demarcate areas of particularly high risk in the School; and to liaise with the Department of Health to screen learners and educators.

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·      In the medium-term, the Department of Education has undertaken, by January 2015 to provide mobile classrooms for the education of learners at a local primary school.

·      In the long-term, the Department of Education has undertaken to construct a new school.

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SECTION27 has some concerns with the plan, in particular with the lack of clarity as to responsibility for the cost and implementation of the short-term plan and the unlawfully long timeframes for the construction of the new school. SECTION27 has written on behalf of the School Governing Body to the Department of Education in this regard. Should we receive no satisfactory response to these concerns, SECTION27 has been instructed to pursue litigation.
While we regret that the Department of Education failed to comply with its obligations sooner, we welcome this development and the stated commitment on the part of the Department of Education to bring an end to both the health and the education rights violations that have been occuring at Khiba.

 

Issued by Section 27

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