DA raises concerns and vows to fight draconian BELA Bill after conclusion of Eastern Cape hearings
14 June 2023
The public hearings regarding the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill were concluded in the Eastern Cape this weekend.
As with the other 8 provinces, Eastern Cape participants raised many of the same concerns the DA have with the Bill, particularly the clauses that seek to disempower schools and school governing bodies (SGBs) from determining their own language and admission policies, which could be used to target mother tongue education schools, especially Afrikaans schools.
The DA is also greatly concerned that the clause making Grade R mandatory does not take the severe financial, facility, and staff constraints into consideration. While Grade R is extremely beneficial to learners, the Department of Basic Education does not have the money to ensure that all learners are able to access Grade R should the BELA Bill be signed into law.
The Minister of Basic Education should also not be allowed to prescribe the number of SGB members to serve at public schools for learners with special needs, nor how they’re elected.