Call for schools in Motherwell area to close

School governing body members and parents from at least 10 schools in Motherwell gathered at the Nelson Mandela Peace Park on Thursday morning to discuss if schools in the area should be closed.

The chair of Mfesane High School’s governing body, Siphiwo Dayimani, said the department of education was not prepared to welcome pupils back any time soon as teachers were falling sick and several schools in the area were yet to receive personal protective equipment. .

Dayimani said some of the governing body members who were present were from Mfesane, Vezokuhle, Mboniselo, Zanoxolo, Mbasa, Ixoselenani and Cingani high schools.

“We [are] saying that the schools must not be opened until Covid-19 has passed,” Dayimani said.

“The president announced that the rate of infection is about to increase within these two months.”

According to a memorandum which will be handed over to the department, at least 10 schools in Motherwell have closed due to teachers or pupils being infected with Covid-19.

The group demanded that the department of education close schools until proper sanitation was done and personal protective equipment was supplied for pupils and cooking staff.

EFF member Msindisi Makeleni, who is part of the party’s health portfolio in the Nelson Mandela Bay region, said they supported what the governing bodies were saying and they also wanted schools to be closed.

He claimed that, based on their assessments, there were more parents who were saying schools should be closed than those who wanted them to be open.