Picture: A scholar bus transport at Motsaalore Secondary School/Supplied
By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI
29 July 2026 – The Chairperson of the North West Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety and Transport Management (COSATMA), Freddy Sonakile has called on the North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management to submit a comprehensive report following reports that hundreds of scholar transport vehicles were not presented for mandatory roadworthiness inspections ahead of the commencement of the third school term. Sonakile said while the department has indicated that a significant number of operators failed to comply with the inspection process, reports have also emerged from some operators alleging that they have not been paid for periods of up to three months, leaving them financially unable to prepare their vehicles for inspection.
He further said the committee believes these allegations warrant a thorough investigation on a route-by-route and operator-by-operator basis to establish the facts and determine where accountability lies. Sonakile added that the committee has requested that the department’s report clearly indicate which operators failed to present their vehicles for inspection and the reasons for their non-compliance, whether outstanding payments by the department contributed to operators being unable to comply with the inspection requirements and what disciplinary or contractual action will be taken against officials or operators found to have acted negligently.
“This should include a comprehensive account of all reported scholar transport disruptions on the first day of the third school term, including routes where learners were left stranded or unable to attend school. There can be no bargaining with the lives and safety of our learners.
“If departmental officials failed to pay legitimate service providers and that negligence placed children at risk, then heads must roll. Equally, where operators deliberately failed to honour their contractual obligations despite being able to do so, the department must invoke the cancellation clauses contained in the Service Level Agreements (SLA) without hesitation,” he said.
Sonakile further said accountability cannot be selective when the lives of the children are at stake. He added that they will closely scrutinise the department’s report to ensure that responsibility is assigned where failures occurred and that appropriate corrective measures are implemented.
“The committee reiterates that the safety and well-being of learners remain non-negotiable and that every stakeholder involved in the scholar transport programme must fulfil their obligations to protect learners. I braved the cold to conduct an oversight inspection at Motsaalore Secondary School in Khunotswana following complaints from concerned parents about the state of scholar transport.
“Learners have reportedly been arriving late for school, and on some days not attending at all because of the transport challenges. I arrived before the school day began at 7:30am. Shockingly, the bus only arrived at around 8:30am before leaving to collect another load of learners,” said Sonakile.
He said in his engagement with the principal, he was informed that the matter has been reported to the department repeatedly since February, yet little has changed.
The Guardian 