Keeping Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga in her position is “a disruption” to the country’s education system, says ANC Youth League deputy secretary-general Kenetswe Mosenogi.
The youth league and the Congress of SA Students (Cosas) called for Motshekga’s resignation during a combined briefing at Luthuli House in Joburg on Tuesday.
Mosenogi said the textbook debacle in Limpopo was an embarrassment to the country. “It defies the very purpose of what we’re fighting for, and that’s economic freedom in our lifetime,” she said.
Cosas president Bongani Mani said Motshekga had failed to deliver on the trust placed in her to enable teaching and learning to take place. “She has further taken the people of this country for granted by refusing to demonstrate leadership by acting decisively to manage the ongoing saga. Minister Motshekga must issue an unconditional public apology to the people of South Africa for denying learners an opportunity to create better futures for themselves,” he said.
“President (Jacob) Zuma must not be put under pressure to act against minister Motshekga. She must take personal responsibility, admit her failures and resign. We will give Motshekga two weeks to comply with these demands of young people, and if she again fails to deliver, we will take it upon ourselves to demonstrate how she is crippling education by mobilising our members to use mass action, including occupation of the Education Department, until she resigns,” said Mani.
Mosenogi said the youth league had been raising its concerns regarding the delivery of textbooks in Limpopo internally, but nothing had been done, which was why the league would resort to mass action.
“We’re tired of begging. Education is not a privilege. We don’t need to beg her to deliver,” she said.
“You can’t have a political head of a department saying ‘I’m not responsible for the delivery of books’ – it shows her lack of understanding of her duties… she’s responsible for each and everything that happens in the department.”
Mani said it wasn’t just the Limpopo textbook saga that Motshekga had failed to act on. “We’ve raised simple things… that aren’t rocket science for her to act upon and she does nothing,” he added.
Asked what would happen if the two weeks were up and Motshekga had not budged, Mani said: “We’re young, we’re very flexible with our minds, we’re very creative. She might be the wife of the chief whip but she’s not untouchable. No one deployed by the ANC is untouchable.”
In a statement sent out to respond to the youth league and Cosas, the ministry’s spokeswoman, Hope Mokgatlhe, said the call for Motshekga to resign was misguided.
“On Monday, July 30, 2012 the national executive committee lekgotla of the ANC released a statement, citing particular directives for the department to strengthen its capacity, to which the department subsequently responded with a fresh commitment… It is interesting to note that the ANCYL/Cosas was part of that decision taken at the lekgotla,” she said.
The Star