Image Source: eNCA
Local – General Secretary of the National Association of School Governing Bodies (NASGB), Matakanye Matakanya, said it is unacceptable that more than 2,000 learners at Reiger Park School are struggling to access clean drinking water, with several reportedly turning to fire hydrants after the school’s taps ran dry.
The school’s governing body says it has been working to repair damaged facilities and has escalated the matter to the provincial education department. The crisis comes as the country heads toward local government elections, placing scrutiny on the state of school infrastructure.
“The situation is terribly sensitive and highly unacceptable, in the sense that, as you have already stated, over 2,000 children do not have the proper facility to answer nature,” Matakanya said.
Toilets In Disrepair for Months
Matakanya said the sanitation shortage at the school has left learners without functioning toilets for months, describing the conditions as inhumane. He said the numbers involved make the situation untenable for both learners and staff.
He added that the shortage has forced large numbers of learners to share a handful of working facilities, raising serious health concerns at the school.
“More than 2,000 children out of that number are using 25 toilets, and of those 25 toilets, only seven are working. Just imagine what will be happening, and for months. Nature calls at any time, and it does not count how many people it should call,” he said.
A Wider Pattern of Neglect
Matakanya said the crisis at Reiger Park shows a broader pattern affecting under-resourced schools across South Africa and criticised the silence from communities and officials over ongoing service delivery failures.
He called on parents, communities and school governing bodies to speak out and demand intervention from the provincial education department rather than accept the conditions as normal.
“Why are we keeping quiet? We can’t say because these things are happening in the township, that are happening all over South Africa, and keep quiet. We must make noise. We must seek help. We must scream out there and say we want help in this school,” he said.
