Durban - The report into the alleged selling of teaching posts, to be released this month, has reignited tensions between the South African Democratic Teachers’ Unions and the Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga.
Sadtu has accused Motshekga of colluding with “right wingers” to destroy the biggest teacher union.
The union was implicated in the leaked interim report into the “jobs for cash” scandal, which surfaced last year.
General secretary of Sadtu, Mugwena Maluleke, fired a broadside at Motshekga, saying she had failed to run the Basic Education Department.
“She wants to eliminate us because we question her decisions that have crippled the education sector. We find ourselves in this situation because of her decisions.”
The union shot down the findings in the interim report, saying the ministerial task team had come to far-reaching conclusions on certain matters without evidence or objective facts, and based on untested allegations.
The union gave an ultimatum of 10 working days, which ended on Friday, for the task team to respond to their grievances.
Maluleke claimed that Motshekga hadn’t consulted them before making decisions that had a direct bearing on teachers. “She’s a dictator,” he said.
He claimed that of all the teachers’ unions, Sadtu had been the only one targeted.
Motshekga revealed last week that the final report was based on facts. But Maluleke dismissed this claim, saying the investigating team was instructed by Motshekga to target Sadtu.
“The report, even though I haven’t seen it, is based on preconceived ideas. I don’t want to prejudge the outcome of the report, but I know (it) will implicate us because of the fraught relationship we have with her,” he said.
Both Sadtu and Motshekga, however, agree that the education department was marred by a litany of controversies, including the shortage of skilled teachers.
Maluleke blamed Motshekga for the crisis that besets the education sector. “It’s unacceptable that pupils in Limpopo are still without books and proper classrooms. It’s unacceptable that some pupils in KZN still have classes under the trees. The decisions taken without our input have had a negative impact on the matric results,” he said.
He was referring to the drop in the national matric pass rate to 70.7 percent, down from last year’s 75.8 percent.
Despite his attack on the minister, Maluleke said: “We are looking forward to the report, but we do have our reservations.”
He also expressed his concern about the department’s stance of wanting to convert teachers’ unions to associations. He claimed this was another “barbaric” act aimed at weakening unions.
KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Limpopo are suspected in the “jobs for cash” scandal.
The Sunday Tribune learnt last week through an internal source that all those implicated in the report will be criminally charged.
The Department of Basic Education has previously clashed with teachers’ unions over claims that some were behind the “jobs for cash” scandal.
Maluleke said the leaking of the interim report last year was premature.
He said the ongoing squabbling lowered the morale of teachers, adding that pupils, mostly from impoverished backgrounds, were the ones who suffered.
The task team started its work in September after media reports alleged that teachers’ unions and education officials were involved in the selling of teaching posts.
Vice-president of the National Teachers’ Union, Alan Thompson, said they were awaiting the final report. “As much as the investigation was not intact, we hope those who will be found guilty will face the consequences of their actions,” he said.
Spokesman for the department of education, Elijah Mhlanga, downplayed Maluleke’s claims, saying: “We can’t accuse the minister of targeting certain unions because she didn’t do the investigation herself, it was done by an independent institution.
“So it can’t be right that the minister is targeting some unions.”
Sunday Tribune