COSAS members marched to the Moretele Office Park in Moretele in the West to follow up on the grievances that they submitted in December 2020.
According to Kabelo Maumakoe, the regional coordinator of COSAS, on Wednesday, 28 February, they marched demanding the reopening of the Moretele TVET College, safety in schools, allocation of school transport, water and sanitation and maintenance of dilapidated infrastructure.
He said they have been waiting for four years after handing over a memorandum of demands to Moretele Office Park.
Maumakoe said they gave them 14 working days to respond to their grievances.
"We have been waiting for many years, and no one has responded to us," he said.
He said they are disappointed with the education department in the area.
Maumakoe said the office that caters to the Department of Education, traffic, agriculture, fire emergency services, public works, and SASSA must be moved from the premises so that the TVET College can start operating.
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"If they fail to open the TVET College, then they must build another new college in Moretele Local Municipality," he said.
Maumakoe said that they are disappointed and that education is the future of young people. He said that they are giving them another 14 working days to respond.
"We want them to tell us when we are going to receive our TVET College," he said.
Koketso Mahlangu, a former COSAS convener in the Bojanala region, said: "We need our TVET College back. We can't continue without a tertiary school in our area. Our demand is simple: bring back our college."
Lencoe Makapane, the spokesman of Bakgatla ba Mosetlha Tribal Council, said that they were informed about a march demanding a college. "After high school, children are struggling to develop their skills. As the authority of the land, we came to listen to children because they are the future," he said. He said the tribal council also demands a college.
Makapane said the college used to be a centre of excellence for the tribal council.
The Higher Education, Science and Innovation spokesman, Veli Mbele, said: "I have forwarded your query to our TVET branch for processing and a reply. I will advise as soon as I have a reply."
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