Cape Town – President Jacob Zuma says he will have a peaceful night’s sleep on Thursday after seeing the many smiles on the faces of the Kensington High School learners during his visit to the school.
The President unveiled the newly-refurbished school in Cape Town as part of government’s Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) and the National Infrastructure Plan.
“Education is our apex priority as a country because we believe… it is the key to changing circumstances and changing the quality of life.
“I am very happy also to see that you are happy because you are in an environment that makes you proud and therefore prepares you to be better citizens tomorrow,” he told learners.
He said the school was an example of what can be achieved when national and provincial government come together to provide services.
“This is what we want to see throughout the country. I am going to sleep peacefully today, having seen such happy faces because of what has been done,” he told learners.
When the President arrived at the school, he was welcomed by the school’s principal Trevor Jacobs, Deputy Minister of Basic Education Enver Surty, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga, Western Cape MEC Debbie Schäfer and Premier Helen Zille.
The President conducted a tour of the school, where he was shown the school’s upgraded facilities and classrooms.
In the Grade 12 Physical Science class, Sesethu Kedama, 17, introduced her classmates to the President.
A light moment followed after the President asked what the class was working on. Sesethu paused, smiled and pointed to the chalk board, showing the President a formula they were working on.
The school was first established in 1934 under the name Kensington Central and was located along Kensington Road in Maitland. At the time, the school offered Grades 4 – 8.
As the need for secondary education increased in the area, more classrooms were built and this led to the establishment of Kensington High School in 1951.
In 1974, the school moved from Maitland to a prefabricated building and its current location.
The school’s principal said he was happy that after the school was in an inadequate structure for many years, they have finally moved into a new school.
Over and above the science labs, the school also boasts two computer rooms equipped with uncapped ADSL.
Overhauling school infrastructure
As part of the ASIDI initiative, the department has so far handed over 49 schools in the Eastern Cape between 17 July last year and August this year.
This was the second school that was opened in the province.
Last week, Deputy Minister Surty unveiled a newly refurbished Die Duine Primary school in Lotus River.
The Western Cape leg will see the department handing over 14 schools in the first phase, followed by another 11 schools thereafter.
The President said as highlighted in the Constitution and the Freedom Charter – a document drafted in 1955 during the liberation struggle – every child has the right to be educated, and that the opening of the school showed the significance of the two very important documents.
“The official hand over of this state-of-the-art school is living proof that we are on course to deliver to the people of the Republic. Our children should be taught in decent schools. Our teachers should teach in decent schools.
“It is for this reason that we have embarked on this programme to eradicate mud and plankie [wooden] schools,” he said.
He said that as part of the ASIDI programme, schools that previously lacked basic services had been attended to this August. He said over 200 schools were given access to water, electricity and sanitation services last month.
The President later urged learners and teachers to respect their school’s infrastructure, adopt a culture of learning by starting classes on time and embracing a culture of reading.
He encouraged learners to also take up subjects like maths, science and technology so that they can have careers that will make a meaningful contribution to society. – SAnews.gov.za
