Children suffer as tribal tensions mount in Borolong, Chadibe
Pini Bothoko | Tuesday June 9, 2015 18:00
- Borolong parents choose ‘tree education’ over enrollment in Chadibe
- Rival tribes refuse to mix learners
The situation is so dire that while their own school is bursting at the seams, parents from Borolong will not enroll or transfer their children to a nearby primary school at Chadibe where there are vacant classrooms.
Most people from Chadibe village are descendents of Balozi while those from Borolong are mainly Barolong.
The tribal standoff is fanned by a long-standing dispute over a piece of land commonly known as Mpatane or Shongochena ward, which is situated between the two villages.
The Borolong Primary School currently has a population of over 1,000 pupils, but is supposed to accommodate 800 learners only.
About seven classes at Borolong attend lessons in tents as well as under trees because of a shortage of classrooms.
The long-running feud between the villagers came to light again on Wednesday during the Tonota Sub-District Council.
Borolong councillor, Fletcher Mothubana asked what the Council intended to do in order to address the shortage of classrooms at Borolong.
In her response, the Council’s Education Officer, Malebogo Macheng said that they have advised villagers from Borolong Primary School to transfer their children to Chadibe where there are vacant classrooms, in order to alleviate the problem.
She added that a new primary school would only be built in Borolong in future if funds become available.
The matter also came to the fore in 2013 when former education minister Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi advised the Borolong residents to enroll their children at neighbouring Chadibe village during a Kgotla meeting.
Back then, Venson-Moitoi said government had no money to build another school in Borolong. At the time some irate parents told Venson-Moitoi to her face that they will not allow their children to attend school with those from other tribes.
Yesterday, Shashe-West MP, Fidelis Molao, the area legislator, told Mmegi that in the past he had encouraged the two neighbouring villages to bury the hatchet and put their differences behind them, all in vain.
“After addressing several kgotla meetings encouraging the villagers to utilise the available resources between them, I was left with no option in the end.
That is when I had to call the former education minister, Venson-Moitoi to intervene,” said Molao, who is also the Assistant Minister of Agriculture. With his intervention falling on deaf ears, Molao is now awaiting the construction of the second primary school in Borolong village, which has been provided for under NDP 11.
“As the area MP, I am aware of the differences between Borolong and Chadibe villagers.
I have been pleading with them to put the interests of their children ahead of other considerations, but still they can’t listen,” he said.