Another Limpopo school torched as road protest continues

17 January 2017 - 13:01 By Zoe Mahopo
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A second school was torched in Limpopo on Monday night as residents continued protesting over a road construction project.

Provincial police spokesman Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said a high school building in the Tshitale area was torched during the night after Vari Primary School was set alight in the Nthabalala area earlier on the same day.

Mojapelo said there were also reports that the block of classrooms at the primary school which had not initially been burnt was finished off overnight.

“We have arrested one person and we will be making more arrests as investigations are ongoing‚” Mojapelo said.

Water Affairs offices‚ a post office and state vehicles have also been torched since the protest started.

Mojapelo said the burning of properties happened at night‚ making it difficult to catch the culprits.

  • READ MORE: School torched in LimpopoPolice on have confirmed reports of a school being torched in Tshitale outside Vuwani‚ Limpopo. 

“They burn these things at night. You just see a building go up in flames‚ but you don’t know who did it‚” he said.

The area has been shut down since last week Wednesday amid demands for government to complete a 45km road connecting Tshitale to Morebeng. This has resulted in pupils from over 30 schools in the area staying away from class while businesses have also been closed.

The rioting has continued despite negotiations between community leaders and Limpopo MEC for public works‚ roads and infrastructure Jerry Ndou.

Tshitale Community Forum spokesman Edson Khomola said residents were not satisfied with the contents of the commitment letter from the department.

Khomola said they wanted a letter which clearly states that a tarred road would be constructed in the area while also giving a specific date for construction to resume.

He said the community would only consider stopping the protest once they receive a reviewed commitment letter on the project from the department.

– TMG Digital/Sowetan

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