BASIC EDUCATION MINISTER SIVIWE GWARUBE NO SHOWAT EQUAL EDUCATION EVENT TO DEMAND QUALITY EDUCATIONFOR ALL

Youth-led education lobby group, Equal Education have slammed the no-show by Basic Education minister, Siviwe Gwarube who failed to show up at a mock swearing-in-action event at her Pretoria headquarters on Friday, 27 September. Scores of learners from across Gauteng turned up in their school uniforms to demand quality education for all and to call on the Minister to address challenges faced by black learners. Pupils had planned to present a People’s Performance Contract but the minister did not bother showing up.

EQUAL EDUCATION A GRASS ROOTS EDUCATION MOVEMENT

Speaking to INX Prime, researcher at Equal Education, Mahfouz Raffe, explained that the movement is a grass-roots youth-led initiative formed by no fewer than 4,000 learners from five provinces. Their goal is to organize learners to strive for quality education and highlight challenges faced by learners in townships and rural areas.

“The movement calls upon all sectors of society, particularly the state, to help learners realize their constitutional rights to basic education and to ensure that the future of the country is protected,” Raffe said.

MOCK SWEARING-IN-ACTION EVENT

With the appointment of a new basic education minister, Equal Education activists and learners were hoping to demonstrate their work to the minister and allow learners to express their views about what they would like to see happen in the new administration to improve quality and equality in South Africa’s education system.

“A range of issues were raised by learners, including school safety, the eradication of school infrastructure backlogs, the hiring of new teachers, and ensuring government spending on education is pro-poor and directed at learners who need it most,” Raffe said.

CAUTIOUS EXCITEMENT ON GWARUBE APPOINTMENT

Raffe added that the movement was cautiously excited when they heard Gwarube was appointed basic education minister. As one of the youngest cabinet ministers, there was hope that she would be more relatable to young students in the country. However, her absence at the event was disheartening.

“Despite agreeing to attend the event, the minister did not show up. We hope that her unavailability does not set a precedent, and we hope her ministry will not continue to ignore the plight of learners from poor communities,” he stated.

He also said Equal Education learners remain determined to continue fighting for better education despite the setback.

GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE PER LEARNER STEADILY ERODING

Over the years, Raffe has monitored budget trends for basic education and discovered the steady erosion of government spending on education. He noted that per-learner funding has steadily decreased since 2011 due to austerity measures, leading to further challenges in providing quality education.

Another concern is the government's failure to meet deadlines for replacing pit-latrine toilets in schools, a pressing infrastructure issue in rural areas.

BUDGET CUT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Raffe expressed concern over recently announced education budget cuts, which are projected to create a funding shortfall of between R79-118 billion from 2021 to 2028. He warned that these cuts would exacerbate existing challenges in the sector and have long-term consequences.

“We are extremely concerned about the budget cuts, and we think everything must be done to protect learner spending. We will be paying for this blunder for generations to come,” Raffe concluded.