Broken windows, unhygienic bathrooms and homeless family – horrific state of Joburg school angers parents

Long grass, broken classroom windows, and litter decorate the premises of Die Burger High School in Johannesburg West.

Some classroom doors are welded shut, while other classrooms are badly vandalised.

Concerned parents said there are various health hazards, including the unhygienic toilets and the decay in the school building infrastructure. At this technical school, not one of the former workshops seems to be in working order, with damaged equipment and stripped copper wire hanging in the room.

A parent, who asked to speak anonymously in fear of being targeted, said the toilets were unhygienic and a health hazard. The structure of the school is falling apart, added the parent.

“No textbooks, but the School Governing Body (SGB) told us our children would be provided with textbooks, and that there was no need for us to buy them. Our children don’t have teachers for some subjects,” the parent said.

The parent was also concerned about the alleged gangsterism practised by pupils in the school.

One of the SGB members, Agnes Masuku, said some issues happened before the current SGB took over.

“The structure is also bad. It has not been maintained for decades and it’s about to fall apart,” she said.

Masuku said it was true that the bathrooms were unhygienic and that it was an issue she had raised before and also one of the reasons she wanted to be part of the committee.

“The homeless family is another issue because they contribute to the state of school structure to fall apart. They are very unhygienic, with small children roaming around and they steal electrical cables and other school resources. Now with Covid, by law we can’t remove them until we find them a place to stay with the court’s approval. With what money to pay the lawyers?” she said.

‘Serious safety risk’

Last month, the Democratic Alliance visited the school following incidents of break-ins by alleged squatters on the premises. This followed a complaint by concerned parents about the horrific state of the school.

DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Education Khume Ramulifho said a homeless family of six adults and one infant had invaded the premises of Hoërskool Die Burger in Bergbron, Roodepoort.

“They have been occupying three classrooms for almost two years and pose a serious safety risk for both pupils and teachers as well as the integrity of the school premises and equipment,” Ramulifho said.

He said the homeless family was also sharing ablution facilities with pupils, putting the lives of innocent pupils under threat.

“This is unacceptable as a school is supposed to be a safe place for pupils, not a place to harbour homeless people,” he said.

Ramulifho said he was disappointed with the state of the infrastructure and the school environment in general.

“The school is old and is turning 120 years this year. The infrastructure is ageing and is in dire need of proper regular maintenance,” he said.

The department of education has not responded to the allegations.