Motshekga says pit latrines will stay
PUPILS at schools in rural areas continue to suffer from the big stink.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga confirmed that 25 schools in KwaZulu-Natal will continue to use pit toilets for another year.
In a written reply to Parliament last week, Motshekga said the government had decided that schools in the Mpofana municipality would not get flushing toilets. There are 32 schools in the area, which includes Mooi River.
Pupils will instead have to stick it out with their "Ventilated Improved Pit Toilets".
"In the main there are no plans to provide water-borne sanitation to any of these schools since it is not the appropriate technology for this area," Motshekga said
The Limpopo department of education yesterday also confirmed that there were almost 50 schools without toilet facilities in the province.
Spokesperson Pat Kgomo said there were about 47 schools.
This flies in the face of government promises every year to eliminate pit toilets.
The situation is not unique to KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Mpumalanga. Many other schools in other provinces don't have proper facilities.
Yoliswa Dwane of the Equal Education Campaign described Motshekga's comments as "worrying".
"It is a disgrace that a national minister cannot find a solution to this problem," she said.
Dwane said they were aware of more than 2000 countrywide schools without proper ablutions.
"We know there are about 2400 schools without toilets in the country. In order for schools to function, they must have proper toilets, not just pit toilets," Dwane said.
She said flushing toilets were a must if South Africa wanted to claim its schools functioned properly.
Motshekga said the schools would get flushing toilets if they had a sewer line to a treatment plant and a reliable water supply. If not, pit toilets would be their fate.
1malesia
This topic with schools just makes me so angry! The stats don't ever change, in fact when they do, they just become worse!Report Abuse
Tshele
"It is a disgrace that a national minister cannot find a solution to this problem,".....indeed...this makes me angry too..kante rona re lo sokola until when ye..Report Abuse
Sinudeity
And the only sin of the DA is building open toilets (only because the ANCYL destroyed their coverings). And here we have the ANC government satisfied with giving the people pit toilets.Which merely points out to me, the amount of electioneering going on behind the scenes.
The government couldnt afford to give the teachers pay increases. The government could afford to give themselves pay increases (and one ANC top dawgs' pay increase, equals the pay increases of a 1,000 teachers). We managed to throw R60 million at some ANCYL youth festival. But we dont have money to build proper toilets for school kids.
F*** the ANC - the worst thing to happen to SA since apartheid.
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ledzera
Akihito you are running the country just keep on payin that tax the politicians will misuse the money at the same time the'll try to fix where they can but just keep on payin that tax work hard to run this country and if ur not payin the tax lough out loud n good luckReport Abuse
Afroman
ANCYL - here's your chance once again. Trash these pit toilets and demand flushing toilets, like you did in Cape Town. OHHH. How can you. It's your own people who installed this. You TWO FACED, inbecels. Can't condem your own party can you?Report Abuse
monyenyo
she's running our education system into anarchy whilst he priviliged kids attend boarding schools with "appropriate" toilets , maar this ministers , eintlik what the hell are they supposed to be doing , cos all the seem to do is add more problems than solutions , do we actually need these ministersReport Abuse
Mbeva
ANC=DA . DA gives flushing toilets without covers and the ANC gives pit toilets with covers.It is the same difference.Report Abuse
