MOKOPANE – The Democratic Alliance has written to Acting Limpopo MEC for Education, Jerry Ndou, to demand a thorough investigation into the state of sanitation at Lebuaneng Primary School where a Grade 5 learner fell into a pit toilet.
The learner sustained injuries and was treated at the mobile clinic. This comes after the DA conducted an oversight visit at the school in Bakenberg, Mokopane.
“It is unacceptable that learners are forced to use hazardous ablution facilities, with risk of injury or serious infection. This is a serious problem across the Limpopo province where 48,6% of all school learners are made to use pit-latrines during their school days,” says Jacques Smalle MPL DA.
This unfortunate incident follows Premier Stan Mathabatha’s commitment in his State of the Province Address on Tuesday that government will eradicate inappropriate sanitation facilities and unsafe school infrastructure. As Premier Mathabatha acknowledges the massive problem, it is time that government resolves this hazard to our children once and for all.
The current national norm for toilets is 22 learners per toilet while Limpopo’s target is 40 learners per toilet. At Lebuaneng Primary, there is 530 learners and only four toilets each for girls and boys. This disturbingly amounts to one toilet for every 66 learners.
The DA call on Mathabatha and the Department of Education to speedily implement their commitment to ensure that children use ablution facilities at schools without fear or harm to their person.
