By REGINALD KANYANE
25 September 2025- The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) in the North West said is deeply concerned and outraged by the growing number of burglaries in schools across the province. SADTU said these criminal acts have led to theft of valuable learner support materials, including laptops, tablets and other essential resources meant to improve the quality of teaching and learning.
SADTU provincial secretary, George Themba said they view these incidents not only as criminal activities, but also as direct attacks on the future of the learners and the progress of the education system. Themba said the theft of these critical tools deprives learners—especially those from poor and working-class backgrounds—of opportunities to access modern learning resources and widens the gap in education equity.
“We condemn these acts in the strongest terms and call for increased school security. The North West Department of Education must urgently strengthen security measures in schools, including employing trained security personnel, installing alarm systems and ensuring rapid response to reported incidents.
“Communities must play an active role in safeguarding schools as valuable public assets. Schools belong to communities and it is the duty of all citizens to protect them from vandalism and theft. We urge the South African Police Service (SAPS) to prioritise investigations into these burglaries, arrest the perpetrators, and dismantle criminal syndicates that target schools,” he said.
Themba further said the government must ensure that stolen learning materials are urgently replaced so that learners are not disadvantaged in their academic development. He added that SADTU remains committed to fighting for quality public education and protecting the right of every learner to access resources that enable effective teaching and learning.
“We will continue to engage with relevant stakeholders to find lasting solutions to the scourge of school burglaries and ensure that education is defended as a societal priority,” said Themba.
Meanwhile, the North West MEC for Education, Viola Motsumi shared the same sentiments. Motsumi said they condemn in strongest terms the barbaric acts of burglary happening in different schools within the province.
“This follows a series of burglary incidents that have been reported from Ngaka Modiri Molema and Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati Districts, wherein these incidents happened amid the Preparatory Examination period.
“In Ngaka Modiri Molema District an incident of burglary was reported at Setumo Secondary School. On 17 September 2015, in the early hours, there was a burglary incident at the school. The school security personnel was held at gunpoint by two suspects, who tightened him with a rope in the guard room then proceeded to break into the staffroom, three offices were broken into as well as the strong room.
“Items such as 3 laptops and 28 tablets were stolen. The school opened a case of theft at Lomanyaneng Police Station. In the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District, an incident of burglary was reported at Reivilo Secondary School. In the early hours of Tuesday morning, there was a burglary incident at the school,” she said.
Motsumi said items such as laptop movable cubit, 32 Acer laptops, 32 Acer laptop chargers, 3 HP laptops, 1 Lenovo laptop and 2 external hard drives were stolen. She said the school opened a case of burglary at the local police station.
The Guardian 