Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development Runs the Risk of Another Hoërskool Driehoek Tragedy

(Budget Debate of Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development)

During the recent Budget Debate for the new financial year, the Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) warned the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development that it is running the risk of another tragedy similar to what transpired at Hoërskool Driehoek.

The Freedom Front Plus added that the Department is failing school communities across the board.

The Department of Infrastructure Development is responsible for building and maintaining all public schools in Gauteng and for paying property taxes to local governments on behalf of these schools.

Despite this straightforward mandate, the Department is notorious for dropping the ball, to the detriment of many school communities.

Over the past two years, the party has implored the Department to step in and address serious infrastructure defects at two schools to avoid yet another tragedy.

Brakpan Primary School has large cracks running through its double-storey building, which is particularly concerning as these cracks appear to run through supporting pillars.

After conducting its own inspection, the Freedom Front Plus sent a detailed report to the Department of Education to raise the issue with the Department of Infrastructure Development. To date, no inspection has been conducted at the school.

Carletonville High School faces similar infrastructure issues, with conditions deteriorating rapidly every time it rains. Again, the Department has failed to send an inspector to the school. The school’s governing body has had to close parts of the building, including several classrooms, due to the Department’s inaction.

One cannot help but wonder: Will the Department wait for another tragedy before finally taking action?

In contrast to the Hoërskool Driehoek incident, where the infrastructure issue was unknown because regular inspections had not been conducted, the Department is fully aware of the critical condition of Brakpan Primary School and Carletonville High School.

Consequently, it will be far easier to file criminal charges against the MEC and the Department of Infrastructure Development should anything happen.

There are also numerous examples of poorly executed construction projects. It is alarming that the Department managed to complete only one project in the previous financial year.

Moreover, the Department failed to spend its entire allocated budget and had to return a portion to the National Treasury (NT).

An example of the Department’s failure in service delivery is the infrastructure upgrade at Lakeside Primary School.

After spending R53 million on the construction project, the school, which was previously fully functional, is now unusable. Clearly, there is a serious problem with appointing reliable contractors.

In addition to not performing routine maintenance on infrastructure, the Department also failed to pay numerous schools’ property taxes to local governments.

This situation became so dire that the Ekurhuleni Metro recently attempted to cut the electricity supply of over 90 schools, including schools for children with disabilities, which would have had severe health implications. The Freedom Front Plus intervened promptly, bringing the crisis to the attention of the MEC for Education, who put a stop to it.

The question remains: How could this happen? The property tax accounts were months overdue, indicating reckless indifference by the Department.

The party will keep pressuring the Department of Infrastructure Development to provide proper service delivery to school communities, including the construction of enough and safe schools, the maintenance of existing school infrastructure and settling all outstanding debt to local governments.

Freedom Front Plus Symbol: The party’s logo features a blue and white color scheme.

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