Johannesburg - Angry parents of pupils from Parktown Primary School in Johannesburg forced the school to shut down, demanding the removal of the principal.
On Tuesday, parents, guardians and members of the school governing body (SGB) shut down the primary school, denying pupils, teachers and staff members access to the premises.
"She must go, we are tired of her ill-treating our children and teachers. We cannot be dictated by her, this is not her school," an angry parent said.
The protest started on Monday but pupils and teachers were allowed on to the premises.
The parents indicated the state of the school and the "arrogant" principal were their reasons to shut down the school.
The allegations by parents were that the principal bullies teachers and staff members and she does not maintain the school properly.
Speaking IOL, the deputy SGB chairperson, Stanley Eze, said their children are failing in numbers and they have lost four teachers now due to bad treatment from the principal.
"And now, more than three teachers have already complained that they are going to leave, we are talking about good teachers," he said.
Eze said he was concerned about the grades of the learners because they are failing in numbers and nothing is being done about it.
Eze also raised safety concerns about the school infrastructure which includes toilets and classrooms.
“The girls' toilets are dirty and broken and to date, they are not fixed," he said.
He said they have engaged with the Gauteng Department of Education since 2017 and their problems have not been addressed.
He said the department has been delaying in addressing the matter, and he suspects they are protecting the principal.
He said they want the removal of the principal because she is not good for the school and will run it to the ground.
Outside the school, on the pathway that the learners use daily, there is a manhole that is open and parents are afraid that something bad might happen to their children.
Parents threatened that they will shut down the school until their grievances are resolved and they are also threatening to close Empire Road to show the seriousness of the matter.
The Department of Education in Gauteng said it is fully aware of the ongoing disruptions of education by some members of the community at Parktown Public School.
The provincial department’s spokesperson Steve Mabona said after thorough engagement with the school community on October 17, the department has committed itself to launch an investigation on the allegations levelled against the principal of the primary school and that she will report to the school on October 18.
"However, the community continued to disrupt teaching and learning today, October 18 irrespective of that intervention," he said.
Mabona urged parents not to disrupt schooling as lost contact time is not easily recovered.
"Accordingly, we strongly believe that our intervention will yield positive results hence we plead for patience from parents," he added.
Current Affairs