On 6 February 2026 around 50 parents protested at the gate of Mamelodi Teacher Centre outside demands scholar transport to be brought back.
They were holding placards and singing and dancing.
They handed over a Memorandum to Daniel Tloubatla from district director from department of education received and signed a Memorandum.
On 6 February 2026 parents protested at the gate outside Mamelodi Teacher Centre.
The protest was led by an organisation called Keledi Ya Mme and they were other organisations who were there in support of this protest such as Vhathu Phanda.
Speaking to founder Nkele Lekganyane from Keledi ya Mme said they are gathered as parents not as troublemakers, not as criminals, and not as politicians but as concerned mothers and fathers.
We are here because our children are not the problem.
For days now, our children have been unable to attend school due to the lack of scholar transport.
This is not their fault. It is not the fault of parents who are struggling daily to survive.
It is a failure of the system that is meant to protect and serve our children.
When there is no transport, there is no school.
When there is no school, children fall behind.
And when children fall behind, the future of our communities is put at risk.
Punishing children for problems they did not create is not a solution.
Today we wear black to symbolise our pain, our seriousness, and our unity.
We stand together as parents because silence has not helped us. Letters have not helped us. Waiting has not helped us.
This march is an emergency call.
We are demanding immediate action.
We are demanding that school transport be restored without delay.
We are demanding that our children’s right to education be respected and protected.
We are not here to fight.
We are here to be heard.
We are here to protect our children.
We call on the Department of Education and all relevant authorities to act now not tomorrow, not next week now.
Our message is simple and clear:
Our children are not the problem.
Fix the system.
Bring back school transport.
Our children suffer, parents must rise.
We will continue to stand together until our children are back in school safely.
Enough is enough.
Some parents also voice out their concerns who were affected by this.
Parents Sonto Motau from Leeuwfontein said she has 2 kids who are traveling with bus one grade 10 attending school at Chipa-Tabane secondary school and other grade R attending at Leeuwfontein primary school.
This bus is affecting us and kids are all over they are playing at the bridge, and they are all over the place. Our kids are also crying and asking for money for transport and she is not working and survives by child social grant and pleaded with department to have mercy on them and their kids.
Another parent Thabang Makgakga he is from New Town at phase 2 and his child is in grade 2 at Leeuwfontein primary school and he travels with bus and this thing is affecting because we survive by social grant and our kids are all over the street and where we stay there are rail way lines and kids go and play there.
And it’s rained recently and flooded water and kids play there also and we are afraid our kids will get hurt for not going to school and stayed home. This is affecting us and we are asking for help.
And this thing will ruin our kids and other kids will end up going to drugs because they are at home doing nothing because there are no scholar buses to take them to school.
MEC matome chiloane they plead with him to take them seriously as he is working and getting paid. We don’t get paid and he gets money. We don’t have money for translation.
Tebogo Phiri from Leeuwfontein she has 2 kids who are traveling with a bus to school grade 4 and grade 9.
This thing of scholar transport is very disturbing us cause every day kids wake up and asked when will they go to school and kids are getting naughty and where we live there are dangerous railways line and kids go there and play there.
It is not nice to watch kids sit at home. We need help with transport.
Minky Mahobosha her 2 kids attend school at Leeuwfontein primary school and they use bus and pleaded with government to bring back the scholar transport and said kids are depressing them when they are at home and tomorrow our kids will be stuck at home not educated and it bad to see other go to school and others not.
And families are not the same some can afford it and while some can’t. She survived on a child support grant.
Pantes pleaded with Gauteng MEC for education Matome chiloane to fix the mess.
Daniel Tloubatla who signed and received a Memorandum said he is here representing his district director Mr Nkadimeng as a circuit Manager and he is here to listen to the concern of the parents.
As the department they acknowledge that this was not planned and this is not what they wished for.
In our role as a department we want to make sure our learners are in class. Our vision is very clear each and every learner feels valued and inspired in our system.
Hence we provide transport so that they feel valued and become inspired to be future citizens of this country.
There was a communication that the department is aware of this strike by the service provider.
They are raising two issues one issue of payment and the other issue is harassment by the traffic department of transport.
We are responsible for the issue of payment.
And the MEC communicated on the issue of payment that they are in constant negotiations even when I’m talking to you now I’m reliably informed that there is a meeting with the service provider.
So what we can hope for is for negotiation to yield positive results so by Monday we resume with scholar transport and our children go to school safely.
It hurts everyone to see young kids going to train and will fall and the rail ways. And it is not what we want.
MEC Gauteng for education Matome Chiloane is dealing with the matter.
He said they will introduce a catch up programme to schools for those who couldn’t make it to school.
Those who miss class when we resume classes when those learners arrive will make sure they catch up. There will be a support that learners will get and also pleaded with parents to support learners and help them with their work also.
Copy of a Memorandum:
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