Johannesburg - The Job Rathebe Junior Secondary School in Orlando East in Soweto was shut down on Tuesday morning by angry parents and members of the school governing body (SGB), who demanded the principal be fired.
SGB members, parents and other community members blocked the entrance of the school on the first day of the third term calling for Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi to address their grievances.
"We cannot be ruled by an absent principal. The school fence has many holes, the toilets are a total mess overflowing with sewage, the library is in shambles, the infrastructure is not safe for our children," one of the parents said.
SGB chairperson, Bafana Mlambo, said were tired of their complaints falling on deaf ears at the department and found they had no other option but to shut down the school so they will be heard.
Mlambo confirmed that the Gauteng Education officials, chief director Dennis Makwakwa and spokesperson Steve Mabona, arrived at the school on Tuesday to address their situation, however a more formal meeting was scheduled for Wednesday.
"We had a separate meeting with them and we agreed that on Wednesday we will have a formal meeting so that our grievances can be heard. Makwakwa promised that in the meantime for the principal's space, an acting principal will be temporarily appointed for the school to continue.
Makwakwa told IOL that the school principal was absent on Tuesday and they could not reach her but would investigate her absence.
He said he entered the school premises and identified structures that were of poor standard.
"As a department, we have appointed a contractor that will come on site and make sure that they deal with those particular issues.“
Mlambo confirmed they had a meeting with the Gauteng Department of Education on Wednesday to discuss the way forward following the shutdown on Tuesday.
He said they did not finalise anything in meeting because they had a lot on the table of which they could not resolve in one day, “hence we have 14 days to resolve everything”.
He also highlighted that the principal did not report to work “even on Wednesday” and Makwakwa had a meeting to find out what the problem is.
He added that on Thursday they were going to the bank to shift all the authority of the principal from the school's finance, because she had access to the school account.
He said they would give a full report after they have finalised everything concerning their grievances.
Meanwhile, during the shutdown, a pupil was detained after being found with a firearm. Responding to the matter, chairperson Mlambo said that he had heard that there who a learner arrested because of having a firearm with him, but that it was later discovered that it was a toy gun and confiscated.
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