Deputy President Paul Mashatile has accused organisations involved in the Nedlac talks concerning the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Act of attempting to flout processes and make decisions through the “back door”.
Speaking to Sunday World through his spokesperson Keith Khoza, Mashatile said that the clearing house mechanism had been assigned to deal with disputes regarding the act and that they were not aware of any parallel discussions that could make proclamations on the matter.
“In the clearing house, there are 10 parties but when you look at the comment by Solidarity, only the DA participated, so that questions the legitimacy of the process and the outcome. This process was done through the back door.
“The minister did not inform us about the conclusion of their talks before issuing the statement. I do not know if the minister was involved in these talks in her capacity as a member of the DA, but it is not consistent with what we are working towards,” he reiterated.
Mashatile assures the representatives of all political parties in the GNU clearing house mechanism that processes will unfold to manage the situation collectively.
“The Bela Act, like other acts, is a product of parliament and the president, and no intervention can, therefore, downplay the centrality of these key role players,” he said.
This comes after AfriForum, Solidarity, Solidarity network and Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube revealed they had, through Nedlac consultations, reached a resolution, which will not require amendments for now. A representative from the presidency was also part of the discussions.
The settlement involves the assertion that the Bela Act no longer be implemented on December 13. This is to allow national policies and regulations to be developed in an attempt to determine that schools that are running at their full capacity may not receive instructions to change their language and admission policy.
The next step will see Gwarube presenting the recommendations to President Cyril Ramaphosa for consideration.
In a separate statement, Gwarube explained that the settlement was informed by the need to protect and preserve the balance of powers and functions that have been conferred by law on partners in national and provincial government as well as public schools represented through their SGBs.
She also emphasised the constitutional right of every pupil to receive a basic education, to be taught in their mother tongue where this is “reasonably practicable” as well as the need to protect and promote their interests.
Clause 4 of the Bela Act provides for a provincial head of education to override a school’s language policy, an authority that currently rests with SGBs.
South African Democratic Teachers Union deputy secretary-general Nkosana Dolopi believes the way in which Ramaphosa handled the dispute was the first stumbling block.
“We are raising an issue with the president because it has never occurred that you will sign a law and then say some pages are not part of what I signed. So, the confusion started there.”
Cosatu parliamentary coordinator Matthew Parks believes the statements issued by the education minister and Afrikaner rights groups caused confusion about the direction which will be taken.
“We think AfriForum has taken advantage, they saw a gap and ran with it. The fact that they issued a statement before the government shows they were playing to the gallery.
“I think that some of the DA ministers should understand that it is not an executive committee, but a cabinet and they should be accountable to the president,” he said.
The ANC has accused the DA of trying to “bypass established processes in a desperate effort to perpetuate apartheid-era standards in our education system”.
