Soshanguve Learners Boycott Classes for 8 Days Over Delayed School Construction

• 653 Umkhumbane Junior School pupils have been sharing facilities at a host school 3.8km from their designated building site
• A Grade 10 learner revealed that pupils are charged R2 to use the toilets and face hostility from other learners at Ruabohlale Secondary
• Parents say they were promised a new school by 2025, but three years on, the allocated plot remains vacant and unbuilt

GAUTENG — Learners at Umkhumbane Junior School in Soshanguve have staged an eight-day boycott of classes, citing unacceptable conditions at Ruabohlale Secondary School, where they have been temporarily housed while awaiting the construction of their own permanent building.

According to TimesLIVE, a total of 653 registered pupils from Umkhumbane have been placed in nine mobile classrooms at Ruabohlale Secondary, a school located 3.8km from the site earmarked for their own facility. Parents said officials informed them as far back as 2023 that the hosting arrangement would be short-term and that a new school building would be ready by 2025. Three years on, the designated plot remains undeveloped.

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Learners charged to use toilets

A grade 10 learner at Umkhumbane described conditions at the host school as hostile, telling Sowetan that pupils from her school face bullying and are denied equal access to basic facilities. She said learners are charged R2 by Ruabohlale pupils each time they wish to use the toilets, and that their classrooms lack both electricity and writing boards.

The disruption to learning extends beyond the boycott itself. One parent noted that grade 8 and grade 9 pupils attend school on alternating days, an arrangement that has contributed to poor academic performance and failed assessments among the affected learners. Umkhumbane is not the only school in Soshanguve experiencing woes. Learners at Kukumbane Secondary School went on strike after they were allegedly forced to write their exams inside buses due to limited classrooms.

Gauteng Education Department yet to respond

The Gauteng Department of Education had not responded to media queries at the time of publication, though department officials were scheduled to visit the school. No timeline has been provided for when construction on the permanent building will begin.

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School deregisters learner after suffering mental breakdown

In a related article, Briefly News reported on an 18-year-old Grade 10 learner who was deregistered from Tshepo Themba Secondary School while receiving psychiatric treatment. The school cited its 30-day absenteeism policy despite the family submitting a doctor’s note.

Source: Briefly News