Radiokop school development still stuck in limbo
No further budget was allocated as Environmental Impact Assessments and Township Establishment Applications are still incomplete.
An empty field in a prime development area has long been a marker of wasted potential.
Located at the corner of Paul Kruger and John Vorster Road, the land is officially known as Portion 77 of the Farm Panorama 200 IQ Radiokop. Earmarked for the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), work began to build a school on the land in 2016 but a combination of incomplete paperwork and community objections have left the school stuck in limbo.
The last correspondence between officials around the subject was between the provincial government and DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Education, Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) Khume Ramulifho. The MPL posed questions to the department to establish the status of the project, known as Panorama Primary School No 2.
Midway through the project, Township Establishment Application (TEA) processes and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) requirements changed, resulting in a restarting of the process. To date, R9.5m has been spent on the project but no budget has been made available for the resumption of the construction.
“Budget for the construction project to continue will only be allocated once the TEA and EIA issues have been resolved,” stated the question and answer document from April.
GDE spokesperson Steve Mabona declined to elaborate on the necessity or value of having a new school in the area and stated questions about the project should be directed to the Department of Infrastructure Development (DID). The DID acknowledged receipt of the questions on September 21 but no response had been received at the time of publication.
DID spokesperson Alfred Nhlapo did state telephonically on September 20 that the intention was still to build a school at the site.
Mirroring Nhlapo’s sentiment, the question-and-answer document states, “The GDE is unable to make an accurate estimate as to when the project will be completed until the TEA and EIA issues have been resolved.”
