Parents at Ndama East Junior Primary school at Rundu are protesting poor learning conditions, rejecting relocation, and warning of an election boycott over government inaction.
They say they will not to move their children to other schools and they will not vote in the upcoming regional and local authority elections.
The school has 14 teachers and 582 pupils, who are taught under 12 big trees as makeshift classrooms.
Speaking during a demonstration at the school on Tuesday, headman Olavi Mpande warned that the community would boycott the elections if the government did not intervene.
“People have the right not to participate in elections because the people they are voting for in power are not welcoming or listening to them. Who should they vote for?” he asked.
Mpande said volunteers and parents in the Ndama area have rallied to provide learning opportunities for pupils who could not be absorbed by existing institutions due to overcrowding of classes in 2020 and 2021.
He said he had written four letters to the town council to request a meeting – without success.
“The current council never took the time to come to the community or acknowledge our request to go to their office to have a meeting,” the headman said.
The Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture, however, maintains that the school cannot legally operate.
Resident Asser Ndara on Tuesday said: “Parents came with the idea of finding someone to help, and we advised them to alert the directorate of education, the town council, and the governor’s office so they can be aware of what’s going on. But even with those efforts, the ministry promised to build, yet nothing has been built.”
He said some of the pupils are from remote areas, including Ndama South, where a permanent structure was built by the government.
Ndama resident David Ndumba said the conditions pushed unemployed graduates to volunteer as teachers, pooling resources to establish a makeshift school at Ndama East.
“Parents vow their children will not go anywhere else because Ndama South and other schools are already overcrowded,” he said.
“For many parents, the issue is not only about infrastructure, but also about fairness, transparency, and respect for community-driven initiatives,” Ndumba said.
The parents have also called on the Office of the President and the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development to investigate the matter, including claims of diverted funds.
Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) Rundu Urban constituency chairperson Frans Kandjilu said the government must accept responsibility for meeting the educational needs of its people.
“The provision of schools is the mandate of the education ministry. What is happening now is a failure the government has created for itself by not responding to the growing population of Rundu,” he said.
Kandjilu said more than 500 children is enough to start or legalise a school and the question should not exist when pupils are being taught under trees.
He commended the government’s efforts in recent years to build new schools at Rundu, but argued that the measures were insufficient.
“The government has tried building five or more schools in a short time, but the fact that we still have pupils sitting outside shows more must be done. We cannot accuse parents or unemployed teachers of creating an illegal school,” Kandjilu said.
