The Democratic Alliance has accused the Gauteng Department of Education of failing learners at Danville Secondary School in Pretoria West. A recent oversight visit found severe infrastructure shortages and staff shortages that continue to undermine teaching and learning.

DA Gauteng shadow MEC for education Sergio Isa Dos Santos said parents themselves carried desks and chairs from a neighbouring school after the department failed to provide them. Last year the school operated from a hall with four classes sharing one space. The mobile classrooms that arrived later came without any furniture, forcing learners to sit on the floor for more than a week.

Overcrowding and sanitation problems persist at Danville Secondary School

Danville Secondary School still needs at least 12 additional teachers. Some classes now have up to 50 learners. Dos Santos said these numbers make effective teaching impossible.

Toilets at the school have never been connected to the sewage system because of missing bulk infrastructure. Learners use mobile toilets while the entire school depends on one water tap. These conditions raise serious concerns about health, dignity and safety.

Assurances from MEC Matome Chiloane contradicted

Dos Santos noted that the situation directly contradicts repeated promises by Gauteng education MEC Matome Chiloane to improve school infrastructure.

“Despite repeated assurances from MEC Matome Chiloane about improving school infrastructure and conditions, the reality on the ground paints a different picture,” he said.

He asked why parents must protest before the department acts. The DA says it will keep conducting oversight visits and will push for every child in Gauteng to have a safe, dignified learning environment.