By Luvuyo Mjekula
Tensions remain high in Alicedale following a mass protest by angry residents on Monday. A large group of community members, from both Nonzwakazi and Transriviere townships, blockaded roads with burning tyres and rocks amid a heavy police presence.
The protest is a result of Alicedale residents’ frustration that their worries over the unsafe school in which their children are expected to study, is not being properly addressed by either the province’s education department or the contractor responsible for fixing the Hendrik Kanise Combined School buildings.
Residents’ leader Khayalethu Nyamakazi said: “It was a massive response from all sections of the community. It started early in the morning, before 4am. There was a heavy police presence, but our people were defiant even though there was no violence. In fact the police assisted us in getting hold of these Department of Education officials.”
Sarah Baartman district police spokesperson, Captain Marius McCarthy, confirmed the presence of the police and added that there were no arrests made. Nyamakazi said the situation was still tense and the residents were contemplating resuming the protest next week.
Speaking to Grocott’s Mail last night, Nyamakazi said the school remained closed and the residents would meet today to map a way forward. Another resident, Tshaka Siwisa, confirmed the planned public meeting. “We want the school to be built,” he said.
The residents are demanding the reconstruction of a hazardous building to be speeded up so that their children can return to a safe school. The school has been closed for weeks, leaving the nearly 600 pupils in limbo.
For more than 10 years, the residents have been waiting for the R150m construction project to get off the ground. However, in recent months, the residents resolved to close the school until the dangerous double storey building was demolished or barricaded and prefabricated classes put up.
This was due to frustrations caused by the lack of decisive action from the Department of Basic Education and the Coega Development Corporation, who have promised, for years, to get the project up and running.
A week ago, the residents decided to escalate their frustrations to the provincial government headquarters. They hired a taxi for 13 delegates to travel to Bhisho hoping to get help from the Education member of the executive council (MEC), Fundile Gade or the head of department, Sharon Ann Maasdorp. However, many of them were unemployed parents who came back extremely disappointed.
On their return, they vowed to completely shut down the small town on Monday.
The prolonged delays in the implementation of the project have been attributed to complications between the department of education-appointed implementing agent, the Coega development corporation, and its chosen contractor, Amajuda Civils.
Coega has reportedly since parted ways with the company and there have been delays in appointing a new contractor. Grocott’s Mail understands that some of the work is scheduled to begin on 26 May.
