Bonda Girls use Facebook to seek change
Students at St David’s Girls High Bonda in Manicaland are reported to have gone on strike protesting declining educational and living standards at the school. The school is one of several in the province taken over by renegade Anglican Bishop Nolbert Kunonga and his supporters.
In both Harare and Manicaland, property belonging to the church has been taken over by Kunonga and Elson Jakazi (Kunonga’s right hand man in Manicaland). This has prevented the church from continuing its work in providing healthcare and education in its communities.
Educational institutions taken over in Manicaland Province by Kunonga’s followers include St David’s Bonda, St Faith’s, St Augustine’s and St Anne’s Goto High Schools. Elson Jakazi is interfering with the work at all these schools, while demanding large levies to finance his activities.
At Bonda problems arose when the school loaned a large amount of money to a member of staff known as ‘Tsonzo’ instead of using it to complete a building meant to house students. The issue is said to have angered both students and parents because the dorms at the school are currently over-crowded.
So bad is the situation there was a recent outbreak of a disease. Dressed in their red skirts and white blouses the students walked on foot from Bonda to Watsomba, a distance of more than 40km, to see and make an appeal to the former headmaster Mr Jervas Chidavanyika who retired several years ago.
In 1996 a similar demonstration saw students again walking on foot to Watsomba to approach Chidavanyika who rescued the situation then. The students are said to be hoping for a similar outcome.
Meanwhile in the Diaspora a group of former students are mobilising on social networking site facebook with the creating of a ‘reunion’ group called St David’s Girls High Bonda Reunion. At least 3 re-union functions have been held in the UK with the aim of finding solutions to problems at the school.
The group which is the brain child of Portia Masekesa Udochukwu, Stembiso Mandizha and Moira Tsanga is already planning a big re-union at the Monomotapa Crowne Plaza Hotel in Harare on the 3rd of December. Chidavanyika the former head of the school is the guest of honour.
Speaking to Nehanda Radio.com from Harare one of the organisers Jackie Mungwazi said “We are attempting to create an Old Girls Association that will have the capacity to chart a way forward and help resolve the problems that are facing the current students at our beloved school.” Nehanda Radio.com
