Cape Town – Education MEC Debbie Schäfer said an arrest has been made after she was alerted to non-perishable food items for school nutrition programmes, being sold at a shop in Retreat.
Schäfer said the swift action of the police resulted in the arrest along with the recovery of 18 cans of pilchards.
She said she was informed by a member of the public the canned pilchards, clearly packaged for the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP), were being sold at a shop.
“They are exclusively for use in our schools and can only have ended up in the shop by criminal means. We immediately reported this to South African Police Service.
“I am pleased to report that the SAPS has already made an arrest and recovered 18 cans,” Schäfer said.
She commended the police for their swift action and thanked the member of the public for reporting the matter to her.
Schäfer said she would be following the investigation with great interest to see how it came about that the goods destined for the NSNP ended up in the wrong hands.
“I hope this serves as a warning to those who would steal from our schools.
“The NSNP is a vital lifeline for our most vulnerable learners. To steal NSNP food is to steal directly from the mouths of children and it will not be tolerated,” she said.
Schäfer urged the public to be vigilant when purchasing goods and asked residents to report any suspected theft of NSNP goods to the SAPS.
African News Agency (ANA)