Build One SA leader, Mmusi Maimane, and its Gauteng provincial leader, Ayanda Allie, gave Premier Panyaza Lesufi seven-day notice to produce a progress report on remedial action at the Mayibuye Primary School in Tembisa, which they visited on Monday.
Last month, Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka released a report tilted, “Mayibuye Formal Report” revealing irregularities and corruption by the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development (GDID) on the construction of the school, resulting in R82 million being squandered.
Maimane first raised his concerns in 2020, following the discovery that the school was built on a wetland, which endangered the lives of learners and teachers, clear indication of negligence from GDID and the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE). Lesufi was the then MEC for Education.
During a walkabout, Allie described the school as “one giant crime scene”, stating there was an open space and when it rains, the water seeps into the grounds making it unsafe for learners.
She added that there was no running water at the school, heightening hygiene risks for learners. There were no built-in restrooms, instead learners and staff members used mobile toilets. There was also an absence of sanitary towels for the girls.
Maimane said the school’s faulty construction was against the learners’ constitutional right to quality education. “Still, there is a construction site, but children are meant to come to school. We have made a simple demand, those who originally built the school must pay back the money, because clearly construction was inferior. This is an injustice. The children in this community deserve the best school like any other child in this country.”
Gcaleka gave the GDID a 60-day deadline to submit a report, from the date of receipt, detailing a project plan for the completion of the school to ensure it is operational.
Bosa acting spokesperson, Roger Solomons, said Lesufi needed to indicate whether his office would review the Public Protector’s report. “Lesufi must indicate whether his government plans to take the Public Protector’s report on review or appeal. If not, within seven days, to produce a progress report on the remedial action which has a deadline of midnight on Thursday 29 August.”
Solomons called on the premier to delegate a task-force team to recover the squashed funds, adding that Lesufi’s office needed to provide a list of schools that were awarded contracts to build and refurbish, “but are now closed or abandoned to date”.
Allie previously listed Semphato Secondary School, Hillcrest Primary School, and LG Holele Secondary School, among the incomplete schools.
Gcaleka requested the head of Gauteng Treasury to provide a report monitoring spending habits and prevent irregular and fruitless expenditure relating to the project within 60 days.
‘The Star’s’ attempt to contact Lesufi’s spokesperson, Sizwe Pamla, were unsuccessful.
The Star
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