Siviwe Grarube, the minister of basic education, abstained from the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Bill’s official signing at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
Gwarube emphasised her opposition to the bill as it stands and her desire for President Cyril Ramaphosa to return it to parliament for further consideration.
The boycott marks the first indications of policy disagreements between the DA and ANC, the two main coalition partners, within the government of national unity.
The minister said that although she had added her thoughts about why the bill ought to be reconsidered, no one had responded to her call.
“To this end, I have raised the following issues: the constitutionality of provisions on the implementation of admission and language policies determined by the governing bodies of public schools,” said Gwarube.
“The need for a phased approach to implementing grade R as a compulsory and permanent feature of the basic education system based on the capacity of provincial education departments, public schools, and early childhood development centres to offer access to grade R to all learners who require it.”
Concessions must be made
She stated that in order for the government of national unity (GNU) to represent the will of the people, concessions must be made.
Should Ramaphosa proceed with signing this bill into law, according to DA leader John Steeinhuisen, children’s rights to mother-tongue education will be jeopardised.
He was addressing the Cape Town Press Club on Thursday, where he reflected on the DA’s role in the GNU.
If the signing event goes on, he said the DA would have to weigh all of their options for moving forward.
He emphasised that GNU leaders had to be considerate of their partners’ opinions because there would come a time when things would change.
Steeinhuisen clarified that disagreement was common in large coalitions and that this did not imply that the GNU would disintegrate at every disagreement, but he also said that this did not imply that the DA would never walk away.
EFF, MK Party back the Bela Bill
The EFF claims that the DA’s opposition to the bill stems from its “inherent hatred of the African child”.
The party feels that enacting this bill would bring about a number of changes to address the systemic disparities in South Africa’s basic education.
The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, led by former president Jacob Zuma, applauded the Bela Bill’s enactment as a step towards universal access to high-quality, inclusive education.
The MK Party spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, stated that in order to make education inclusive, it is critical that grade R become mandatory and that language regulations be taken into consideration.
He said that the government ought to make sure that the nation’s most underprivileged societies receive education of this calibre.
“There is nothing fundamentally wrong with the Bela Bill; it must be signed into law,” said Ndhlela.
“Parliament has undertaken all necessary consultative processes and received countless public submissions. It is therefore disingenuous of anyone to try and prevent a democratic legislative process.”
