Teachers take to streets and paint town red airing gripes
THOUSANDS of South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) members braved the blazing heat of Pretoria CBD yesterday, taking to the streets and painting the capital red.
A sea of red shirts and hats made its way across the city centre as members from all nine provinces brought the traffic to a standstill.
They sang so loud that curious city dwellers looked from their flat balconies while passers-by stopped on their journeys and took videos from their mobile phones. Passing motorists hooted in support of the protesters.
“Immediate payment of the pay progression”, “Stop the salary cuts in the community, education and training sector”, and “Appoint all temporary educators in substantive posts permanently”, were among many messages on placards they carried. They also called for the removal of sexual predators in schools, saying schools havens for pupils.
Members sang and chanted for the removal of President Jacob Zuma as they made their way to hand a memorandum of demands to the Department of Higher Education should be and Training, as well as Basic Education.
Upon arrival at Higher Education, employees looked out from their office windows as members submitted their memorandum.
Sadtu president Mogape Maphila said they had hoped to meet now axed Higher Education minister Blade Nzimande instead of officials, but he had been removed from the position earlier in the day.
“We have just learnt about the reshuffle and the minister has been removed from his responsibilities. This happened few minutes before our march and we wanted Nzimande to be here so he could listen to our demands; but whoever is in charge of this department must attend to our issues,” he said.
Maphila told officials they should provide qualified lecturers for the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges in order for them to be vocational in the true sense.
“We want the 0.5% pay progression for our members just as other public servants are receiving their pay progression; equal pay for equal work,” he said.
Deputy director-general of corporate services Lulama Mbobo accepted the memorandum on behalf of the new minister Professor Hlengiwe Mkhize.
However, members were surprised to see Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga being the one to accept the memorandum when they arrived at her department. When she appeared, members ululated and applauded Motshekga for the respect she had shown them.
They also told Motshekga of the 0.5% pay progression demand and demanded the eradication of dilapidated infrastructures which did not conform to the notion of an ideal school. This hampered the quality of public education.
They vowed that, as Sadtu members, they did not associate with abusers and rapists as they considered pupils their own children.
Motshekga accepted the memorandum and said she had already engaged with her colleagues from other provinces.
“We accept that the 0.5% is legitimate and we will indeed take the process forward and with that, I promise to respond on time,” Motshekga said, and it was welcomed by applause.
Members gave both departments seven days to respond and threatened to bring the city to a standstill should they not do so.