Durban - Pit latrine toilets in schools should be declared a national disaster and be prioritised, according to the National Freedom Party (NFP).
This comes after the announcement by the Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga on Sunday that at least 800 schools in the country still use pit latrines.
NFP said in a statement that pit latrine toilets are a serious challenge that not only endangers pupils but speaks to the failures of the government.
The party called for the issue of pit latrine toilets to be declared a national disaster so that funds could be allocated for a massive infrastructural transformation and development in schools.
"It's a shocking revelation. It talks about a deep crisis in our schools. The fact that since 2014, very little has been done to prevent deaths of our primary school learners due to a lack of proper and quality infrastructure demonstrates that there's very little care from the Department,” said the statement.
The NFP’s Canaan Mdletshe said it cannot be correct and acceptable that almost 29 years into democracy, we still talk about the issue of pit latrine toilets.
"Should we have a caring government, this matter should have been prioritised and resolved at least 20 years ago. But because kids from rich families and those of senior government officials, including Members of the Executive, are not affected, very little is done to eradicate pit latrine toilets.
"The NFP challenges the Minister to demonstrate her willingness to eradicate this problem. Over and above that, we call for the pit latrine toilets to be declared a national disaster so that funds can be made available to effectively eradicate these inhuman toilets,” he said.
Mdletshe pointed out that although the NFP does acknowledge that ,generally, decaying and collapsing infrastructure remains a huge challenge in the country, that should not be an excuse for blatant failures.