Please fix our school. That was the plea by hundreds of pupils at John Bisseker Senior Secondary School in East London on Monday.
The pupils, together with parents and staff, staged a protest against the poor and hazardous conditions of the school building.
Cracked walls, no electricity, a dangerous staircase and broken toilets are just some of the issues that have made learning and teaching a nightmare. However, problems at the school go beyond just the infrastructure.
The school governing body (SGB) said it was also in desperate need of five teachers.
We are already two weeks into the second term and yet some pupils are not being taught at John Bisseker.
The department, in its response to the Dispatch, said it had a pool of teachers who could step in.
It is unclear why these extra teachers have not been deployed to John Bisseker already or why vacancies at the school even exist if there are excess teachers at the district education office.
Fixing the school is a priority, but it is also vital to ensure that learning is not hampered.
Many schools are already preparing children for the midyear exams. For grade 12 pupils, who start writing next week, it is a critical time.
In a few months, they will be sitting for their trial exams and then the all-important finals shortly afterwards.
How can we expect pupils at this school, and so many others who face the same challenges, to perform academically when they don’t have enough teachers — or even safe spaces to learn?
The infrastructure challenges at John Bisseker have been in the making for years. Parts of the school are a safety hazard for the more than 1,300 children who walk its corridors on a daily basis.
The department conceded there were problems at the school and said an assessment of the building was done in February last year. Plans to fix the school would be actioned once funds were secured but no timelines were shared as to when this would happen.
While the school waits for the department to make good on its promises to upgrade its crumbling infrastructure, criminals have been stripping away electricity cables and plunging the school into darkness.
Electricity will probably only be restored once a fence is placed around the school to keep thugs at bay.
John Bisseker has a proud 80-year history, having produced successful business leaders, sports stars, doctors and lawyers, among many others.
Its present state is a travesty. One can only hope that the school community and government can rally to restore it to its former glory and give pupils the quality education they are entitled to.