Cape Town – Thursday could be the fifth day that pupils of Vukukhanye Primary School have not been in class as a result of a protest by the residents of Section Four in Gugulethu, Cape Town.
The protest comes after residents did not agree with the City's plans for Tambo Square in the suburb.
Education MEC Debbie Schäfer said Wednesday was the fourth day that pupils and teachers from Vukukhanye Primary School have been unable to attend school due to community protest action.
She said certain members of the community had prevented their teachers and pupils from gaining access to the school by lighting fires at the entrance to the school, and many of the roads leading to school have been blocked.
"The information that I have been given from various sources is that there is a land dispute between the City of Cape Town and the formal dwellers of Section Four in Gugulethu. This dispute is not in any way education related, yet the community has chosen to use the school and the education of our learners as a bargaining chip," she said.
The community of Section Four said they were not consulted about a City of Cape Town housing and development project destined for Tambo Square.
Mayco member for informal settlements, water, waste services and energy Xanthea Limberg said the city council is implementing an upgrading of informal settlements project (UISP).
She said the intent of the project is to upgrade the settlement into 144 serviced sites and to provide a permanent civil engineering services to the site under the UISP of the National Housing Code.
Appropriate land use rights were given to facilitate the upgrading so as to benefit all registered families that are currently residing on the site by providing residential site for each family, she said.
"Community meetings were held with the community of Tambo Square to inform them of plans and obtain input, however the wider community was not involved in these meetings. A public participation process for the wider community was undertaken as part of the rezoning process. Residents were advised on how to make comments via adverts in the local papers," she said.
Limberg said the project would cost R7 million and was expected to be completed by September 2017.