A team has been formed to investigate the recent spate of food-borne illnesses and deaths affecting children in Gauteng. Acting Premier Kedibone Diale Tlabela visited the families of three children from Ekurhuleni who died on Monday, allegedly after consuming contaminated food.
The victims included six-year-old Hope and four-year-old Owami Xaba, who tragically passed away last Wednesday. It is suspected that the siblings, along with a group of students from Sonqoba Primary School, fell ill after eating snacks purchased from local vendors. Health inspectors have since cleared the school’s nutrition program, stating it was not at fault, but the investigation is ongoing.
“There’s a team dedicated to investigating the role of spaza shops and the school nutrition program,” said Diale Tlabela. “The school’s nutrition program has been cleared by the health inspectors.”
In another incident, 29 pupils from Setsing Primary School in Thokoza were rushed to the hospital after falling ill. The Gauteng Education Department revealed that the school’s governing body had allowed vendors to operate on school grounds. However, it appears that some of these vendors sold expired products, which may have contributed to the pupils’ illnesses.
Gauteng’s MEC for Finance and Economic Development, Lebogang Maile, has called for national intervention. Maile, who visited the family of 10-year-old Lesedi Maaboi, who died in a similar incident, urged the president to declare the situation a disaster. "This is out of hand. We need to do something drastic," Maile said.
Maile’s visit followed a call for urgent action made in Alexandra on Monday, where he emphasized the need for more rigorous inspections and better regulation of food vendors. Joshua Maaboi, Lesedi’s father, expressed frustration over the slow response from the government. "Instead of visits, they need to focus on proper inspections, checking who runs the shops, and where they source their stock," he said.
Meanwhile, Maaboi’s wife and son are recovering in the hospital after consuming the same snacks suspected to have caused Lesedi's death.