The South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) has strongly rejected the agreement reached between Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, and Solidarity trade union to present their recommendations on the BELA Bill to president Cyril Ramaphosa.
These recommendations relate to the two contentious clauses of the Bill which relate to admissions and language policies at individual schools.
WE WERE NOT CONSULTED
Sadtu General Secretary, Mugwena Maluleke, said as the largest union, not once have they been consulted on issues concerning the Bill.
He added that the main reasons behind the union's rejection of this deal is how it doesn't relate to their vision for educational transformation in South Africa.
"We have never been consulted and never been engaged in any matter regarding that particular Act- ever since it was signed. We have expressed our discomfort about the suspension of clause four and five but at no stage has the minister sought to to talk to us and we believe that whatever has happened at the level of that network is against what the presIdent has done," he said.
PROPER PROCEDURES
He added that there is a process in the GNU called cleaning the house that deals with such issues.
"As I have said it before, the suspension of these two clause is anti-transformation, it is about promoting the dominance of the minority ,dominance in terms of political as well as economics power. People do not want to have an integration hence they are against transformation. They are saying to us we must go and build a school for the Zulus or the Tswanas but we refuse because South Africa is a non- racial society ,so and therefore this particular Bill or Act is to help us to democratise and to have social cohesion where we can unite our people in this country."
He said,"What is being done now is basically advancing issues of racism and advancing issues of type and ethnicity where its said this ethnic group must stay here alone. So the president has done something that is unprecedented within his powers or prerogative."
