A headmistress at Gomba Primary School in Gutu has left the community devastated after she buried two tonnes of maize meant to feed learners at the school after saving the maize for four years.
The president, Faraidazo Tazvivenga, is said to have kept the maize spoiled since 2020 while school children who were supposed to benefit from it went hungry.
The chairperson of Gomba Primary School Development Committee (SDC), Samson Chidiya, confirmed the incident and said when asked why she buried the maize, Tazvivenga said it was attracting mice to the bird pen where it was kept.
“Maize was brought to the school in 2020 for the school feeding programme, but classes were later disrupted due to coronavirus lockdowns and children stopped coming to school. We only used about a ton and the rest was kept in the school,” said Chidiya.
He said the principal later told them the rest was supposed to be returned to the Social Welfare Department because it was not being used, and the school was asked to raise money for its relocation, which the parents resisted.
“Then we suggested that since the school had poultry projects, we could use corn for those projects as we had two sets of chickens. We continued to use some corn there but later I heard that the school principal told the vice president of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation that he wanted to dig a compost pit at the school.” “We didn’t know it was intended for burying much-needed food,” Shedeya said.
He went on to say that the village head hired someone who dug a compost pit and buried one ton and intended to bury another ton the next day, but the contract man told the other villagers who then informed the other parents.
When contacted for comment, the school’s principal, Faraidazo Tazvivenga, said she could not comment, saying she was not allowed to speak on the phone before hanging up.
“We are not allowed to talk on the phone,” Tazvivenga said.
Gutu District Schools Inspector (DSI) Ronald Muganho said he had not yet determined what happened at the school because he only came across the story on social media.
“I only saw the story on social media, and I have not yet been able to determine how true it is, after which we can conduct our own investigations,” Muganho said.
“The matter came to light after the contract man told other parents during a beer drinking party that he had buried corn at the school and would bury more the next day. Concerned parents then informed President Mazzurro.
Other sources who spoke to this publication said it was believed the school principal tried to cover up taking part of the corn for personal use without permission after parents inquired about the corn.
“She was allegedly using the maize to feed her poultry project and then buried the maize,” a local villager said.
Headmaster Mazuru (born Mukandtsama Mazuru) condemned the behavior of the headmaster and said it was reactionary and equated it with an indirect act of killing given the scarcity of food caused by the drought.
“What the president did is completely unacceptable and this did not sit well with us as a community. Some families had no food, but they had the courage to bury their corn in manure, ndiko kotioraira fanhu uku (which is like killing people).
“The government is helping vulnerable families but there are those who are destroying the grains. I don’t know where this puts her job as a teacher and school principal because she is supposed to take care of these children.”
“The maize could have been distributed to children from vulnerable families and it would have served that purpose, and the worst part is that her answers were not satisfactory when we asked her. We appeal to the ministry to give us another head because we cannot work with someone like this,” Mazzurro said. “.
Theresa Dehua, councilor of Gutu East Ward No. 13, said the president was supposed to agree with the parents what to do with the grains before they spoil.
“We have seen corn that had been buried in manure spoiled and could not be used for cooking or poultry feed. The school principal should have sat down with the SDC to figure out a way forward.
“Maybe she wanted to vacate the room where the corn was stored because it was no longer edible, and even the bags in which the corn was stored were worn out, and this was probably because of the rats,” Dehwa said.
Gomba Primary School has about 650 students, and according to some sources, the school received about five tons of maize. The learners are said to have eaten meals for a few days of the same programme.
The government and other development partners are currently making efforts to maintain high school enrollment rates against the ongoing El Niño drought by providing food to schools in vulnerable communities.
According to the Department of Social Welfare, Gutu District has been allocated about 480,000 tons of maize and has already received about 65,000 tons of maize flour that has been distributed to some primary schools in the district. However, Gomba Primary School has not received its maize allocation at the time of writing, as the schools are still in the process of receiving their allocation. Telezem News