10 Jul 2017

Kgosi Tendani Manyewa of Mafung has expressed appreciation for the two donkey carts at Mphinyane Primary School.

 He said they would assist learners travelling long distances to school.

Speaking in an interview, he said such initiatives showed the government’s commitment to all children by ensuring that they received basic education despite where they lived.

 He noted that the primary school has 40 learners who live in areas far from the school.

He said some of the learners travelled more than eight kilometres to and from school daily.

Kgosi Manyewa also noted that some learners left as early as 4:30am to be on time. He added that such a situation negatively affected pupils as they arrived at school tired, hence low concentration and poor performance.

Moreover, he said it also exposed pupils to the dangers of asking for rides from strangers along the road.

“This is a notable development that will benefit some learners who stay in places such as ploughing fields and others far from school facilities to easily attend classes in time. 

“We have learners who travel long distances to arrive in school, this negatively affects their health status and their academic performance,” he said.

Kgosi Manyewa said the donkey carts would make a difference in addressing challenges of long distances travelled as well as the safety of the learners.

He said the initiative would also benefit the community in terms of citizen empowerment as people engaged to operate the carts would be paid accordingly.

“This is a double benefit initiative as children get to benefit transportation wise, and people who operate the carts will be engaged at a price,” he said.

Kgosi Manyewa said although the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) and the school leadership would be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the carts, operators would be paid by the Tutume Sub-district Council as well as expenses to repair the carts should the need arise.

Although Kgosi Manyewa expressed appreciation over the initiative, he said he was disappointed that the carts had not started operating despite that being in good condition. He also noted that they were handed to the school leadership two months back. 

However, he noted that some people who had shown interest in operating the carts had raised complaints of low wages.

He said he was working with other village elders to encourage the community to support the initiative. 

“This initiative calls for a cordial relationship with the community, as the government has availed the carts, the community should give out their donkeys and be willing to operate the carts. 

This is a first attempt and people should be hopeful that with time the initiative can be improved,” he said.

Meanwhile, the school is one of those in the sub-district with an outstanding academic performance.

The school managed to get a pass rate of 81 per cent in 2014, another performance of 82 per cent and 90.5 per cent in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

The chairperson of the PTA committee, Mr Tapiwa Sephela said although they were challenged with issues of shortage of classrooms, they appreciate the commitment by teachers on their duties.  ENDS