by Taati Niilenge
SEVERAL pupils from Walvis Bay, who attend schools at Swakopmund, were sent home after reporting for class last week.
Schools
around the country, with the exception of those at Walvis Bay, resumed
face-to-face learning last Wednesday for Grades 11 and 12.
At least 11 pupils were sent home to Walvis Bay after attempting to attend classes at Swakopmund.
Sibanga
Sinvula, principal of Swakopmund Secondary School, told The Namibian
last week she was surprised to see pupils from Walvis Bay, which had to
repeat stage 1 lockdown.
“We discovered there were 11 pupils
from Walvis Bay who were already sitting with the others. Only two of
them had permits to enter Swakopmund. Unfortunately, none of them were
allowed to enter Swakopmund until after the lockdown.
“Those
with permits allegedly got them from the Tutaleni Police Station at
Kuisebmond. The rest managed to get here without permits somehow, which
surprised us. We notified the regional office and were told to send them
back to Walvis Bay until the lockdown was lifted,” Sinvula told The
Namibian.
He said he wondered how taxi drivers and private cars managed to get the children to Swakopmund.
He
said he received a call from a pupil at the Tutaleni Police Station and
had to confirm to officers that the pupil was registered at the school
before they issued a permit.
The principal did not give his permission for the pupil to return to school until after the lockdown.
Alina
Imbili, vice chairperson of Nantu Swakopmund, who visited the school
last week to observe their health and safety measures against Covid-19,
says she was worried about the issue, and questioned how pupils from
Walvis Bay were allowed to enter Swakopmund.
“It is an
administrative issue. Let them [authorities] contact us through the
administration channels.We have some letters of support from education
inspectors to issue travel permits to some teachers and pupils. We need
to avoid stigma. The public should also understand about 20% of Walvis
Bay’s workforce lives at Swakopmund,” Imbili said.
Inspector
Ileni Shapumba, police unit commander for community affairs in the
Erongo region says issues were ironed out last week.
“When I
arrived at the first school, there was a bottle of sanitiser, but no
exact point of entry. I assumed I needed to sanitise my hands. I did not
find anyone there to check my temperature. Many classroom windows were
closed due to the cold. Some windows were broken. There is a need for
air to circulate – especially now that people are breathing through
masks. I advised them to open windows during intervals,” she says.
Shapumba says she was satisfied that classes were divided into groups of 20 and that social distancing was taken seriously.
Pupils were screened and sanitised upon arrival, before entering the premises, and were wearing masks, she says.
Teachers were, however, complaining that the screening process takes too long.
