POLITICS

School closure ruling: Zille must resign - Marius Fransman

ANC WCape leader says judgment a vindication of his party's stance on matter

Zille must resign after poor school ruling

Western Cape premier Helen Zille must take full responsibility for the arbitrary closure of poor black schools in the province which has been set aside with costs by the High Court today (see here).

ANC Western Cape leader Marius Fransman says: "DA leader Zille as a former education MEC disgracefully backed her present education MEC Donald Grant all the way to close these schools without due consultation and proper plans put in place.

"Zille must immediately resign as she and her DA-led government lost the public trust. The DA has scant regard for the rights of vulnerable people like those of primary school children from farming communities," Fransman says.

The DA-led Western Cape provincial government has now for the second time lost their case with cost as the interdict was granted late last year and now on review the decision to close the schools was set aside by full benches of the court.

"The ANC welcomes the judgment. It once more vindicates the stance of the ANC and all other parties that the DA discriminated and disadvantaged poor black learners.

"We also knew the DA and especially MEC Grant, since his appointment by Zille, do not understand education. Grant breached educationally sound principles. Education in the Western Cape is not in good hands, as is proven by the ruling of the court today.

We warned and called on Grant to stop fighting the indefensible. He recklessly used taxpayer money to fight the very taxpayers in this province who needed protection. He and the DA must now be stopped to waste taxpayer money on this issue.

"This abuse of taxpayer money by the DA has become a trend in many actions to settle political scores. Zille has lost credibility as a custodian of proper governance and taxpayer money. Therefore she has no other choice but to resign immediately," Fransman says.

Statement issued by Marius Fransman, ANC Western Cape leader and Deputy Minister for International Relations and Cooperation, July 31 2013

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