FF PLUS REJECTS UMALUSI EXCUSES
"The Freedom Front Plus rejects the excuses of Umalusi that it can not reveal information about the standardisation of the matric exams because the process is too complicated and technical and sensitive information may be interpreted incorrectly. It sounds rather as if Umalusi has something to hide rather than the organisation acting out of concern for the privacy of students. Through its refusal, Umalusi is siding with the ANC government which is increasingly hiding information from the public," Adv. Anton Alberts, Parliamentary Spokesperson for the FF Plus on Basic Education said.
The FF Plus is still of the opinion that it is not only in the interest of the public, but also that of learners, that details about the subject adjustments which had been made for the matric results of 2010, is made public. Individual learners will not be harmed by this information as the information which the party has requested will give an indication of national and regional trends and will not contain information about individual learners.
The FF Plus therefore asked in its request for information in terms of the Promotion of the Access to Information Act, that the basis for the adjustments, the specific subjects which had been adjusted as well as with which percentage the adjustment had been made, are made public. The FF Plus also requested that information on regional results is released as adjustments had been made in only some regions and not in others. This action points to possible discrimination.
"The FF Plus would however like to establish whether Umalusi had followed a fair approach. In cases where exam papers were translated form English into Afrikaans, the translation was so poor that it confused learners. We would like to know if Umalusi had taken these facts into account in its decisions to adjust subjects. If this was not the case, the actions of Umalusi could indicate a silent policy of discrimination," Adv. Alberts added.
The FF Plus will therefore continue to put pressure on Umalusi to ensure that it complies with the public's demands for greater transparency.
Statement issued by Adv. Anton Alberts, FF Plus Parliamentary Spokesperson: Basic Education, January 20 2011
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