Empty bottles of beer and expensive whisky discarded in front of Seshegong Secondary School in Olievenhoutbosch by “some parents” have elicited anger and disappointment in the community.
Some people who reacted to the disturbing scene of the scattered rubbish have called on law-enforcement to act against the culprits.
The rubbish was captured in a video circulating on social media and, according to locals, it was dumped by a group of people hanging out at the venue over the past weekend, to socialise and enjoy booze in public.
Some people said the unbecoming behaviour of the illegal dumpers, who included adults, continued unchecked because of a lack of police visibility.
The Department of Education did not want to speak about the matter, referring all questions to the Department of Community Safety.
Attempts to get a comment from the school were also fruitless, as the management refused to speak because the incident did not take place inside the school yard.
Department of Community Safety spokesperson Ofentse Morwane said they had been made aware of a video clip and were “concerned about this kind of behaviour especially when such acts are being conducted in a schooling precinct”.
“Schools are supposed to be areas of academic excellence and never be associated with such immoral acts,” Morwane said.
He said the department was working with all stakeholders with an interest in safety and had been embarking on school visits to rid Gauteng schools of all social ills that continue to threaten learning.
Regional co-ordinator of community patrollers, Sergeant Mthimkhulu, expressed concern about the incident, saying he would make sure his team in the area keep an eye on the situation.
Mthimkhulu said the patrollers were volunteers who were expected to liaise with the SAPS whenever they witnessed unlawful incidents such as public drinking and littering.
He said they worked under the education district to make sure that school properties were safe.
“I will take up the matter with the education district because we have four people assigned to monitor that area,” he said.
Community leader Kenneth Masha said: “This must immediately be
nipped in the bud and with immediate effect. From the video it looks like it is outside the perimeter fence of Seshegong High. This is unacceptable behaviour.”
The person who filmed the filthy scene could be heard saying that parents driving flashy cars such as Porsches, BMWs and Jaguars had gathered at the spot to booze.
“They just come here and drank and now tell me what is this,” he said while capturing empty bottles of beer scattered outside the school's perimeter fence.
The person said he came across the scene while he was on his way to work.
He claimed that every weekend “parents” meet to drink at the spot and leave behind the mess.
However, one social media user said: “Where is the video of the parents to support your statement? I am not saying it’s not adults. We have seen children driving around in hired taxis just to go on a jol and drinking spree. Please send if you took videos and pictures as well.”
Others blamed the lack of police visibility, saying it had led to people flouting the by-laws.
Pretoria News