DA calls on MEC Lesufi to ensure that all schools are prepared before schools reopen

20 May 2020

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is calling on the Gauteng Education MEC, Panyaza Lesufi to ensure that all schools are fixed and ready before the schools re-open during this national lockdown period.

While Gauteng schools are gearing up to reopen, MEC Lesufi indicated some of the things that his department has done in preparation such as allocating a cleaning budget to all schools to hire cleaners to clean their schools.

He also indicated some of the measures that will be put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus in schools such as all learners and educators receiving masks, face clothes, soap and sanitizers weekly. The district offices will be used as war rooms; scholar transport will be sanitized; the department will employ substitute teachers to help reduce number of learners to at least 20 per class; 67 schools will be fenced and schools with low water pressure will be provided with water tanks.

MEC Lesufi was responding to the DA’s oral questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL).

The DA is worried that some of these measures will not be implemented when the schools reopen hence we are urging MEC Lesufi to implement them as soon as possible to ensure that teaching and learning continues uninterrupted when the schools reopen.

We call on the MEC to ensure that all district offices are functioning and have all the necessary resources needed to provide to schools when they reopen. The department should engage with private scholar transport to ensure that all learners have PPEs all the time.

The safety of both our learners and teachers must be a priority for the department when the schools reopen. The department should also monitor the schools‘ spending of the allocated cleaning budget to ensure that it is spent accordingly.

We will continue to monitor the department’s progress in implementing health and safety measures in all our schools to ensure that the department fixes all outstanding matters before schools reopen.

Issued by KhumeRamulifho,DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Education, 20 May 2020