The North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management has instructed the operator of a scholar transport to pay medical bills of the 5-year-old, who was injured after she fell from a moving bus that allegedly had loose windows and was overloaded in Huhudu, Vryburg on Friday.
The Grade R pupil Kgothatso Goralotse who fell off the bus sustained a broken arm, leg and got a cut on her head. Kgothatso’s mother Connie Goralotse said the learner from Moeti Primary School was not even supposed to be on the bus, and she condemned the government officials for failing to ensure her daughter’s safety.
The North West Department of Community Safety and Transport Management spokesperson, Alpheus Koonyaditse has admitted the department does not have a program to exclusively inspect roadworthiness of scholar transport, but the inspection was done as part of normal law enforcement operation to ensure compliance.
“The Department has a team of monitors in all the Districts and observance of compliance is done on an extemporaneous basis. The service level agreement (SLA) the Department has with contracted operators includes a passenger liability by the operator.
“Roadworthiness inspection of vehicles is not done exclusively for learner transport but as part of normal law enforcement operation to ensure compliance. It is on record that earlier this year shortly after schools’ reopening, many learner buses which were not roadworthy were impounded by the Department,” Koonyadise said.
Koonyaditse said the department has already engaged with the bus operator who has committed to pay for the medical bills of the learner.
“The Director responsible for Public Transport Service, Dr Olebogeng Baikgaki engaged the operator following MEC Lehari’s directive for an intervention to arrange for the learner to be treated and be responsible for the medical bill until the child recovers fully. Over and above this, the operator has committed to assist with the private transportation of the learner to and from school until she has fully recovered,” he said.
