Some school safety interventions “failed,” Chiloane says

Chiloane addressed the community of Kliptown, south of Johannesburg, during a School Safety Imbizo.

Chiloane said the ‘adopt-a-cop’ initiative is one of the failed security efforts and says the police are not doing their job.

“We have done quite a number of interventions to keep our schools safe; First, the adopt-a-cop program doesn’t work because the police aren’t doing their jobs in that program. It’s a good program. We want it to work. We need this program, but it is not there because the police are not doing what they should be doing.”

The MEC dealt with a plethora of problems at the school, from bullying, stealing and gangsterism.

Chiloane also blamed parents for the spike in gang-related incidents in schools, citing a lack of parental guidance and involvement as key factors in student misconduct.

“We have picked up fights between gangs, and I still say I blame the parents because they don’t do what they should do and take a great interest in their children when they come to school. Even if there is a parent meeting, the majority do not come,” Chiloane added.

At the same time, Chiloane applauded private security personnel in schools for a great job.

The MEC said that there has been law and order in schools since the security deployment. However, the initiative is not for the long term.

“It is not a sustainable intervention because there is no budget for it, but it is a desperate move by the Gauteng Ministry of Education to stabilize the school when they are in a state of conflict.”

Chiloane further emphasized the need for sign language, emphasizing inclusivity for all children and revealing that all Grade 5 students in schools in Gauteng will be taught basic South African Sign Language.

“We have a multi-certification program in which we teach all our 5th grade students to communicate in basic sign language. All our children will be able to communicate with each other in the future,” Chiloane said.