Will Tokai High school become part of the DA’s election campaign?
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The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) plans to build a new high school on open land alongside Ruskin Road in Bergvliet, to accommodate over 1,000 pupils.
Residents first learned of the proposed development not through consultation or public meetings, but via a small notice board placed on the open land. This led to the formation of the Bergvliet Volunteers Association (BVA), which now has around 300 members.
Residents of Bergvliet, including the BVA, have repeatedly attempted to engage with the WCED and Ward Councillor Eddie Andrews through formal channels, expressing a willingness to discuss the project and build a partnership.
Despite multiple meetings and letters sent to Ward Councillor Andrews, Deputy Director-General Salie Abrahams, and Minister David Maynier, residents report receiving no meaningful responses. On 6 March 2026, they also sent right-of-reply letters to Premier Alan Winde and City Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, highlighting growing frustration over the lack of engagement.
In September 2025, the WCED stated that public participation was not legally required because the land was already properly zoned. However, this misses the point: the social contract between government and the public depends on trust, and trust is built through genuine public participation.
While the lack of meaningful public participation is a major red flag, other issues suggest that the WCED may be acting irresponsibly.
Bergvliet does not require a high-capacity school on the scale currently proposed. Planning documents describe a large institution drawing learners from a wide catchment area, but the surrounding neighbourhood consists of smaller local schools and residential streets not designed for heavy commuter traffic. Introducing such a large school, residents argue, would far exceed local demand and place significant strain on already pressured infrastructure.
This situation is reminiscent of Fisherhaven near Hermanus and the development of Fisherhaven Academy.
Fisherhaven Academy 2.0?
Opened in 2023 in the small village of Fisherhaven, residents say the school has disrupted the local community and even lowered nearby property values. Fisherhaven residents raised concerns similar to those now being voiced in Bergvliet: limited public consultation, harmful impacts on the community, a school that does not meet local needs, and increased pressure on roads and the environment.
Children from Fisherhaven and nearby Hawston reportedly struggle to secure places, while learners are bused in daily from distant areas, including Zwelihle in Hermanus and Gansbaai, 60 km away. These transport arrangements reportedly cost millions of rand annually and have placed significant strain on local infrastructure.
As with the proposed Tokai High School, the Overstrand Municipality maintained that the transfer of Erf 279 in Fisherhaven – the land on which the academy stands – to the provincial government for R100 was legally exempt from a formal public participation process.
Will Tokai High school become part of the DA’s election campaign?
It is also notable that just 12 days before the 2024 election, the Democratic Alliance (DA) promoted the Fisherhaven school in its election campaign. This raises the question of whether we may see a similar campaign by the DA promoting the Tokai High School development in the 2026 or 2029 elections.
If the project goes ahead and is later used in an election campaign narrative, it may help explain why key decision-makers have not responded to the concerns of Bergvliet residents.
Taken together, this situation highlights a broader lack of accountability in Cape Town, the Western Cape, and South Africa as a whole. As a result, independent community groups like the BVA play a necessary role outside formal decision-making structures to ensure oversight.
This represents a practical and responsible path forward: communities taking initiative, acting in the best interests of their families and neighbours, and organising collectively.
Independent news and opinion articles with a focus on the Western Cape, written for a more conservative audience – the silent majority with good old common sense.
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