Had there been enough schools, learners in Gauteng would not have been left stranded
9 January 2019
Today, the 9th of January 2019, there are 16 000 learners in Gauteng who have nowhere to go after the MEC for Education in Gauteng, Panyaza Lesufi, announced that the province’s schools do not have enough space to accommodate all the learners.
According to media reports, the 16 000 learners were not placed because the applicants did not respond the provincial department’s offers. Despite the fact that these learners did apply in time, they have now forfeited the right to be placed at the school of their choice.
The FF Plus in Gauteng considers this announcement a shame and it comes down to nothing but utter laxity by Lesufi and his department.
If Lesufi had ensured that enough new schools were built in the province over the last five years, these learners would not have been left stranded. This is what happens when the warnings of the FF Plus are ignored. The party has recently warned that Gauteng's education is in crisis and that an independent audit must be done to determine whether Lesufi and his department did indeed build the number of new schools that they are bragging about as well as whether those schools are in fact operational.
Lesufi must bear the blame for the fact that 16 000 learners are now faced with the possibility of not getting an education. This tragedy is the result of Lesufi's constant political interference at schools in an attempt to further his own political agenda while as MEC, he is actually supposed to focus all his attention on his department’s functioning and building enough schools.
In November 2018, Lesufi announced that his department had built 54 new schools since 2014, but in August 2018, he said that only 47 schools were built. And in January 2018, the department said that 42 new schools were built.
The FF Plus will keep holding Lesufi accountable for his actions and will not hesitate to expose any malpractice committed by him or his department.
Issued by Philip van Staden, FF Plus MPL Gauteng Legislature, 9 January 2019
