15 May 2024

Residents of Moeti ward in Maun West constituency have called on the government to consider upgrading Moeti Junior Secondary School to a unified secondary school.

They said the move would reduce the distance that children have to travel to Maun Senior Secondary School (MSSS).

Village Development Committee chairperson, Ms Osenotse Kelemogile, made the remarks when presenting a development report during a kgotla meeting addressed by Maun West area MP, Mr Dumelang Saleshando on May 14.

She said upgrading of the existing school would also help reduce congestion at MSSS, which is the only senior school in North West District.

Ms Kelemogile called for construction of a new primary school within their locality to cater for children from settlements in the outskirts of the village citing currently, that they travelled long distance in harsh weather to access education at Boyei Primary School.

She said residents had also requested installation of street lights in the ward as they believed that better lighting would deter offenders who benefit from the cover of darkness.

She said crime was rife in their ward and noted that improved lightning could encourage more people to walk at night which would increase informal surveillance.

Ms Kelemogile also appreciated some developments undertaken in the ward, citing the maintenance and fencing of Boyei School as well as construction of a guardroom, pavement of some internal roads, and improvement of the sewage system and construction of a crush at Xhoroku.

Mr Saleshando concurred with residents on the need to upgrade Moeti Junior Secondary School into a unified school, saying he was equally concerned about the distance travelled by learners to access education.

He said education was a fundamental right of every child hence the need to access it closer. He noted that of recent, he engaged the relevant minister to consider upgrading one of the primary schools in Maun to provide boarding facilities considering that most learners lacked parental guidance and support because their parents were working in camps in the Okavango Delta.

As such, he said, most households were headed by elder siblings and that compromised the upbringing of children.  

Mr Saleshando said they managed some of the projects through implementation of Community Constituency Programme (CCP), citing that priority was to improve the education system.

He said schools in the region had shown an embarrassing decline in performance because of the facilities were not providing for a habitable environment  hence “we saw it fit to channel CCP funding towards maintenance of classrooms and building of information, communication technology (ICT) laboratory classrooms in some schools to provide a good education system”.

He said through the ICT laboratories, they wanted learners to be exposed to the use of internet to sustain a culture of academic excellence in schools.

“I believe that the laboratories will be operational this year and this will help to enhance effective learning and teaching in schools,” he added.

Mr Saleshando appealed to Maun community to register for general election in large numbers as the second supplementary registration commences next week. He said all eligible citizens should exercise their democratic right to register and vote towards building a government of their choice.

He said though some people were reluctant to register as they had perceptions that voting does not really make a difference, it does because if they elect capable candidates of their choice they represent their interests both at council and at Parliament.

He said voting gave them an opportunity to be part of decision making that affected their lives and the future of their country.

“If you don’t vote, others will make the decision for you, as such I encourage you to register and vote,” he added. ENDs