Kuruman pupils return to school

Pupils in Kuruman in the Northern Cape returned to school on Monday after months of protests and disruptions to get a new road built.

"What I know is that this morning learners have returned to the various schools," the province's basic education spokesman Ohentse Stander said.

"Yesterday there was a meeting and a decision was taken by parents to let children return to school."

A group calling themselves the Road Forum began protesting in June demanding that a 130km stretch of road in the John Taolo Gaetsewe district municipality be tarred. The protesters barred pupils and staff from going to school to get the attention of the authorities.

In that month, Northern Cape premier Sylvia Lucas's spokesman Monwabisi Nkompela said the tender to tar the road was opened on June 12 and closed on July 18.

In July, the administration blocks of some schools in the area were set alight.

In August, national basic education spokeswoman Troy Martens said 16,000 pupils from 54 schools in different villages were affected. Of these 496 were matriculants.

Pupils had not been to school since June 4.

SABC news reported early in September that according to Transport Minister Dipuo Peters construction on the tar road would start in two weeks.

Peters' spokesman Tiyani Rikhotso said on Monday he would check on whether work had started.