Johannesburg -
Pupils at an Ivory Park, Midrand, school have been writing exams while seated on tables because the school does not have enough chairs.
So dire is the situation at JB Matabane Secondary School that some pupils have allegedly been bringing small stools from home to sit on, sharing chairs or sitting on dustbins.
DA member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature Khume Ramulifho went to the school on Wednesday to confirm what he had heard.
He alerted Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi. New chairs were then delivered to the school on Thursday.
While Ramulifho was happy that the children finally received chairs, he said it should not have taken a visit from him and Lesufi for something to be done.
“I want the MEC to investigate the role of the district in terms of supporting the school. They are not doing their job,” Ramulifho said.
The Star went to the school on Thursday to find out how long the children have been without chairs and whether the department was aware of this.
However, the principal did not want to speak to the media and referred all queries to the department.
While The Star was at the school, a large truck bringing new chairs arrived.
Some of the matric pupils blamed the principal for allowing the problem to continue as long as it did.
They said he, as leader of the school, should have rectified the situation a long time ago.
The matrics said they were not affected by the shortages but that the pupils in lower grades were.
“The school chairs are small but some pupils have to share them just so they can have somewhere to sit,” one said.
The Star has seen a series of pictures taken inside the classrooms where there are no chairs.
In one photograph, pupils are seated on tables that have been turned upside down.
In another, there are no chairs in the classroom, and tables have been packed against the wall.
Unhappy about the status quo, some of the pupils’ parents informed DA councillor Patricia Rasilingwa, who in turn informed Ramulifho.
“I decided to go to the school and see if it’s true. I could not believe what I saw.
“I informed the MEC and he immediately drove to the school. He was shocked and promised to take action,” Ramulifho said.
The Star sent questions to the Gauteng Department of Education asking, among other things, whether it had been aware of the problem, how many children were affected and whether the chairs were delivered only because Ramulifho had brought the matter to the MEC’s attention.
Responding, the department said it was aware of the shortage of furniture and that the situation had arisen because chairs had got old through normal wear and tear.
The Star