OTTOSHOOP, North West — The North West Department of Education has strongly condemned a recent arson attack at Phakisang Primary School in Ottoshoop, near Mahikeng, where unknown suspects deliberately set fire to mobile classrooms over the weekend. The incident has forced the relocation of learners and sparked urgent calls for enhanced security as provincial authorities investigate what they describe as a concerning trend of school torchings.
According to officials, a temporary classroom has been abandoned following the incident. Although the classroom was locked at the time, a fire broke out inside, resulting in damaged flooring and destroyed textbooks. Learners have since been accommodated in an alternative classroom while the site remains out of use.
Emergency services, including the fire department and local police, were called immediately to the scene and successfully extinguished the blaze. Investigators noted that the fire was not isolated to a single structure. Evidence of a deliberate act was discovered beneath another mobile classroom on the premises, where suspects had ignited a tire and plastic hose pipes.
A spokesperson for the School Governing Body emphasized that this is not the first instance of criminal activity at the institution. The school has previously opened multiple cases with the Ottoshoop (OTSW) police station, reporting a pattern of break-ins, theft, and property damage. The spokesperson urgently requested that law enforcement provide feedback on these existing cases and outline concrete steps being taken to address the ongoing crime targeting the school.
Echoing these concerns, a spokesperson for the North West Department of Education stated that sporadic incidents of schools being torched across the province are deeply troubling and appear to be forming a disturbing trend.
Despite the severity of the situation, the department expressed full confidence and trust in the local police force. Officials affirmed that as investigations into this and other recent school torchings continue to unfold, they are certain that the perpetrators behind these deliberate acts will be seriously brought to book. A formal criminal case has been opened as authorities continue their probe.
