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17 October, 2016 |
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Minister Schafer concerned as incidents of spring holiday vandalism up in the Western Cape. Statement by Minister Debbie Schäfer, Minister of Education Every holiday, the WCED does all that it can to protect our schools from burglary and vandalism. We do so by identifying schools that are high risk, and providing additional security support to these schools. Crime is, however, fluid and unfortunately, despite these measures, some of our schools still fell victim to vandalism and burglaries during the school holiday. I am therefore disappointed that the number of incidents reported during the spring school holiday period has increased from six to nine incidents this year, compared with the same holiday period in 2015. Eight of the nine incidents occurred in rural districts, which is a concern. One incident each was reported by the Metro South, Eden and Karoo District and Overberg Districts, and six incidents were reported by the Cape Winelands District. Our Safe Schools division is working with police and security companies in all areas, including rural districts, to increase visibility around schools during holidays, and with neighbourhood watches to include schools in their patrols. I am most disturbed by an incident which took place in the Cape Winelands, where perpetrators set alight a classroom, destroying the classroom and the learner teacher support material inside. What is the purpose of such an act, other than to setback teaching and learning for our educators and learners? This classroom will now need to be refurbished and its contents replaced. The school has had to find an alternative solution to housing these learners in the interim while these repairs are taking place, and they will not have the relevant learner support material until it is also replaced. All this requires additional funding - funding that the WCED does not have. In a finance meeting last week, we highlighted the fact that the WCED is no longer cutting its finances to the bone; we are actually cutting the bone. We therefore simply cannot afford to keep repairing and replacing what has been damaged or stolen by opportunistic criminals. In three of the reported cases, vandals stole nothing and just vandalised the classrooms. This angers me even further. At the end of the day, vandalism represents theft from our learners. The WCED is completing a cost analysis but so far, the cost for repairs for just over half of the schools has come in at around R400 000. The department and schools could better spend these funds on improving the quality of education in schools. The WCED spends about R10 million a year on emergency repairs for damage resulting from major incidents of vandalism. It is important for communities to take ownership of the schools in their area and realise that they have an important role to play in protecting their community's assets. The co-operation of the community is essential in order to combat learner 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 behavior or activities that occur within the vicinity of their schools. (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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