Johannesburg – A Soweto family is disappointed in the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) for failing to enrol their 9-year-old disabled son into a school.
Maria Ntombela, 65, says her grandson, Mandla Ntombela, is now almost 10 but has never seen the inside of a classroom.
Ntombela says Mandla was diagnosed with Down syndrome at an early age. The family have been trying for the last three years to get Mandla into a school for children with special needs but they have been sent on a run-around.
“We have been trying to get Mandla into school since he was 6 but we keep being sent from pillar to post. The last time we were told that it’s Covid-19 and the school they referred us to can’t help us,” Ntombela said.
She said her grandson loves to draw and play with cars. He is good with cleaning the house and always watches cartoons. She said her concern was that her grandson would not be given a fair chance in life because of his condition.
Ntombela said she was not told exactly what the problem with Mandla was, just that it was Down syndrome.
“My grandson never asked to be born this way and all I want is for him to be a happy child. He can communicate to a certain degree, like when he wants food he will put a dish in front of me,” she said.
Ntombela said Mandla loves drawing and during the week he stands at the gate at their house in Greenvillage and watches other children go to school.
Everyone on Thubelisha Street knows Mandla and he is able to greet and buy sweets at the local shop.
“Whenever we buy him toys, he will break them apart and assemble them again. He is a clever child because even when there’s someone looking for his mother at the gate he can come and fetch her and take her to the gate,” she said.
Ntombela lives in a one-bedroom house with her daughter Cindy and Mandla. The family survive on Ntombela’s old-age grant and Mandla’s disability grant. Both adults in the house take turns looking after Mandla and have even rented out their yard to those seeking a place to build shacks, just to get another form of income.
“Looking after Mandla is a full-time job. Sometimes he can go to the toilet by himself but sometimes he messes in his pants. When he is not understood he gets angry and throws things around,” she said.
Mandla goes to the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital for monthly check-ups. His grandmother takes charge of most responsibilities. She told The Star that sometimes there would not be enough money to go to Bara for check-ups and still buy food and other medicine he needs.
Education activist Hendrick Makaneta said not enough was done for children with special needs. He said in most instances those who lived in the township did not have access to schools that cater for them. For parents with such children, it was also hard to understand the condition of the child.
“Enough has not been done, there has been too much emphasis on the normal schools, and you would find that some kids with special needs would even attend normal schools because of the lack of special needs facilities in their areas,” Makaneta said.
A spokesperson for the Gauteng Education Department, Steve Mabona, said he would revert back to The Star with a comment.
The Star