Another school burns

Barely a day after community structures in Malamulele announced that the five-week protest action had provisionally been suspended, another school building was apparently set alight.

On Wednesday morning, forensic experts were still present at the Nkatini Secondary School at Xigalo in Malamulele. The team of experts was searching for clues as to what had started the fire in an administration block, which also housed the school’s library.

The school became the fifth casualty in the ongoing onslaught against schools in the area.

On Monday, community structures in Malamulele announced that the five-week-long shutdown of services in Malamulele was temporarily suspended. The protest action that the community had embarked on was an effort to support their demand for their own municipality, separate from Thulamela Municipality.

The decision to suspend the protest action was not unanimous. During a meeting of all structures in Malamulele, which was held at the Malamulele Traffic Station amid heavy police presence, some leaders of structures complained that such a decision should be taken at a mass meeting at the stadium and not by individual leaders. This view was strongly supported by members of the Ximoko Party.

Malamulele Task Team leader Mr Isaiah Ndhambi said the decision by the structures was aimed at giving other processes a chance. He said the structures had agreed that while they embraced new processes of reconfiguration of new boundaries, this could not be done while people were in a shutdown of services.

The meeting was held while it seems daggers were drawn between members of the task team and the striking committee.

The police and members of the media were ordered out of the meeting by members of the striking committee.

On Saturday, after failing to convince members of the striking committee that the shutdown should be suspended and give other processes a chance, the task team called a meeting of traditional leaders and pastors in the entire area to get their input, but they could still not convince the youths. Monday’s meeting involved 16 structures, including political parties.

Four structures opposed the idea of the shutdown, namely the Ximoko Party, the Economic Freedom Fighters and The Traditional Healers Association of Dumakude Maluleke and Aganang. After the decision, the tough-talking head of the striking committee, Bejani Hlungwani, said he did not have a problem with the decision taken. He said the decision had been influenced by ANC members who had said that their party would bring about changes to the municipality by August.

“August is around the corner, and if they fail to bring the municipality, there will be a heavy police presence and we will be ungovernable until Jesus comes back,” he said.

Anger in the area reached dangerous levels after statements from ANC deputy secretary Jessie Duarte and by President Jacob Zuma, who said his government would not create a municipality for Shangaans.

The shutdown might have come to an end, but at a great cost. Businesses were looted, services came to a standstill, children were not going to school and school buildings were destroyed.

The latest possible arson attack at Xigalo was condemned by various structures. Limpopo police spokesperson Col Ronel Otto said it was disgusting to find people still participating in irresponsible criminal deeds such as the burning of schools. “We have opened an arson case. We are appealing to the community to give us information that could lead to the arrest of those people who are destroying the future of the children,” she said.

Limpopo education department spokesperson Paena Galane condemned the incident, saying it was a criminal act. “Remember, the shutdown is over and this is simply a criminal act,” he said. Galane further said a task team had been established to look at the damage caused at the schools  in order to come with a workable solution to assist the pupils.

According to the chairperson of the Nkatini Secondary School’s governing body,  Mr Samson Khazamula Mzamani, he had received a call from one of his colleagues around 05:00 while asleep at home. “I do not stay far from the school and it did not take me long to reach the school. The police were already there when I arrived. This is a sad state of affairs as we had thought things were back to normal,” he said

Mzamani said he suspected that people who did not want thechildren to continue with their schooling were behind the burning. “They will not succeed as we are going to sit with other structures and see how they can make a speedy return to normality at the school.”

He  further said the issue of security was worrying at the school. “We need protection here. There has been many burglaries at the school and food items belonging to pupils were stolen on a number of occasions,” he said.

The re-allocation of areas to different municipalities may be a red herring that is sure to cause some more unhappiness.

The Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Mr Pravin Gordhan, apparently made recommendations that several municipalities amalgamate. This was communicated in December and January to, among others, the Demarcation Board in order to secure financial stability.

According to a circular issued by the demarcation board, four Limpopo municipalities - Aganang, Fetakgomo, Maruleng and Mutale - will be dissolved. Aganang will be integrated into the neighbouring Polokwane, Blouberg and Molemole municipalities. Fetakgomo will be divided between the Tubatse and Makhuduthamaga municipalities, while Maruleng will be shared by Tzaneen and Phalaborwa.

Thulamela municipality, under which Malamulele falls, will absorb a part of Mutale. Other parts of Mutale will be divided between the Makhado and Musina municipalities. Modimolle and Mookgophong will be merged to form a single municipality.

Date:20 February 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

Read: 6385