Dispute over R2m spent to repair school

“Repairs have been done at the school.”

This is how Gauteng education MEC Matome Chiloane responded to the legislature when asked about repair work at Noordgesig Secondary School in Soweto.

However, all that seems to have been done by a company that was awarded a R2m tender to fix the school was to repaint walls and repair the ceiling for six classrooms that were affected by smoke when the school's administration block caught fire last year. 

So damaged was the office block that it had to be locked with burnt furniture still inside. The roof trusses had been installed with a corrugated roof but the building has been unusable since the fire. The roof trusses had been installed with a corrugated roof but the building has been unusable since the fire. All its charred toilets were also broken, forcing teachers to use the learners' bathrooms. The plumbing was also destroyed and had not been fixed despite Chiloane saying that his department spent about R320,000 to repair it.

The six classrooms for grade 12s, adjacent to the staffroom, were partially painted and their ceiling repaired, which was part of the R945,000 the state spent on building repairs for the block.

However, the classroom still does not have electricity, which limits learning as teachers cannot use smartboards and rely on blackboards.

Premier Panyaza Lesufi launched the smartboard in 2015, specifically for grade 12s, to modernise education.

School governing body (SGB) member Ismail Steenkamp said the unfinished work was “hindering teachers and learners from doing their work”.

“It has been over a year since this school burned and what they have come to do is fix a few classrooms, but not even one is complete. They put on roofs and ceilings, but there is no electricity. The grade 12 teachers are complaining because they cannot use smartboards.

“It is hindering them from learning. When it is cloudy, raining, cold or dark outside, they can't see half of the things that are shown on the blackboard ... but the department still comes back and asks why the school is not performing. It is because of their negligence. There is no way R2m was spent here,” he said.

The fire incident has also worsened overcrowding as some of the classrooms were converted into office space for the principal and the rest of the teachers.

Another SGB member, Craig Mesier, said it was not acceptable that teachers were sharing toilets with learners.

“They are supposed to have their bathroom facilities away from the children. Spending such an exorbitant amount on a building that still looks like this [not complete] does not make sense. We want better classrooms and office space because files are getting lost,” said Mesier.

According to Chiloane, the department had provided the school with fire blankets and two first aid kits. He also said the school underwent limited fire safety measures; however, the SGB said the damaged blocks do not have fire extinguishers and fire hydrants.  

In his reply to questions that were posed by DA spokesperson for education Sergio Isa dos Santos in the legislature last month, Chiloane said repairs were complete. He said plumbing, building and electrical work cost more than R2m.

Dos Santos said the party has reported Chiloane to the public protector for the “misleading assertion” that the school has been repaired.

“The school has not been fixed despite the department saying to have spent over R2m on repairs. The crucial infrastructure remains unusable, posing a safety risk to learners and teachers,” he said.

“Misleading the public and the legislature is a serious breach of trust, particularly given that over R2m in public funds are at stake. Those responsible must be held accountable for their actions.”

Chiloane did not respond directly to questions sent to him by Sowetan; instead, he said they had procured mobile classes after the fire as a temporary measure while they dealt with the refurbishing of the school.   

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