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7 April, 2016 |
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Minister Schäfer angered and deeply saddened by criminals who target our most vulnerable learners. Statement by Minister Debbie Schäfer, Minister of Education At the start of every new school term, our Safe Schools Directorate provides me a report of incidents of burglary and vandalism that took place at our schools across the province during the school holiday period. I am angered to hear that one of our special needs schools became the target of armed perpetrators who proceeded to remove 50m of fencing from the school. What kind of people would steal from our most vulnerable members of society and place them in a more vulnerable situation by stealing the very fence that helps protect them from external elements? I am deeply saddened by this. It is reported that the foreman and two security guards on site called the police, but unfortunately they did not arrive in time to take action. The cost to repair the fence is more than R600 000. It is simply not possible to sustain this kind of expenditure on repairing stolen fencing. During the April school holiday period, the WCED's Safe Schools directorate increased security at identified high risk schools and deployed additional security to these schools. However, despite increased security measures, each school holiday a number of schools fall victim to incidents of burglary and vandalism. Over the April holiday period, schools reported a total of 16 incidents of burglary and vandalism. The incidents reported included theft of copper pipes, electrical cabling, computer equipment, an entire CCTV monitoring system, and in a separate case 4 CCTV cameras were stolen. Damage to classrooms and school halls included theft of and damage to light fittings, broken windows and stolen sporting equipment. A feeding kitchen was yet again targeted, with food and cooking utensils being stolen. In two separate incidents, perpetrators broke into a woodwork classroom stealing more than R100 000 of power tools and equipment, perpetrators also targeted a store room stealing power tools as well as gardening and maintenance equipment. This deals a blow to our skills development, which provides learners with life opportunities. We should be using these funds to build new schools, improve existing schools and generally improve opportunities for children. The WCED spends about R10 million a year on emergency repairs as a result of damage from major incidents of vandalism. School vandalism not only comes at a cost to the Education Department but to that of the learners and the community too. For instance, R10 million could employ an additional 33 educators in our schools a year, ensure that an additional 9 000 learners attend no-fee schools, or provide over 60 000 additional textbooks. At the end of the day, vandalism represents theft from our learners. While we can and do try to safeguard our schools with additional security measures, we cannot win the fight against school burglary and vandalism without community support and police support, as schools, given their extensive physical infrastructure, are very difficult areas to secure. A school is a community asset. Everyone should help protect schools as it is fundamental to the future of our children. Our Safe Schools Directorate is very active in mobilising communities to look after schools, in conjunction with the police and community-based organisations. The co-operation of the community is essential in order to combat vandalism and to create a safe school environment that promotes teaching and learning. We urge community members to be extra vigilant throughout the year and to immediately report any suspicious behaviour or activities that occur within the vicinity of their schools to report this immediately. I would also like to thank the many communities who have taken this seriously and helped us to protect our schools. The cost of the damages caused during the April school period is still being determined, but estimates are already more than R1 million. (Please note: The WCED does not identify the names of schools that have been affected by burglary and vandalism. In many cases, the damages caused by the perpetrators can result in a security threat or breach. Therefore, it is our policy to not announce the names). | |
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