Officals gave ‘false reports’ on schools

MPLs find textbook, stationery delivery ‘in crisis’

THE education portfolio committee in the Eastern Cape legislature has accused senior education officials of presenting “false reports” on the state of readiness of schools for this academic year.

The members found schools with no stationery and textbooks during their visits, despite the department’s claims that only a few schools had not received textbooks when schools reopened on January 11.

Committee chairman Fundile Gade yesterday told the Dispatch that on their visit to areas such as Ngcobo and Mthatha, they found pupils who did not have exercise books to write in two weeks into the new school year.

“The department must stop giving flouted reports which do not give full details of the problems it faces .

“This is a clear sign that pupil material management is in a deep crisis,” Gade said.

The worst case was in the Mbizana district, where not one school had received a single book yet for the year.

Gade said the committee had only been made aware of possible delays on January 10, but said the committee was made to believe the books would be delivered the following week.

Education spokesman Malibongwe Mtima said the department was aware of the delays in the delivery of textbooks.

He attributed this to the fact that procurement processes were only concluded late last year.

Mbizana placed an order in November for 863 904 textbooks to be delivered to 214 schools for Grades 1 to 12.

Mtima said the delivery of outstanding pupil and teacher support material (LTSM) had been “accelerated” to make up for the delay.

“As a result, deliveries commenced in the second week of January, thus affecting learning and teaching in some schools,” Mtima said.

The department had increased capacity in its LTSM warehouses in the province to ensure sorting and packing of the material happened much quicker than usual.

“The operations in our warehouses have been heightened to ensure schools receive their textbooks as soon as possible.”

Mtima said the department had been delivering “top-up” textbooks to the schools that could not retrieve books from pupils or where pupil enrolment had increased beyond last year’s projections.

“We urge parents and pupils to ensure textbooks are returned at the end of the school year for the benefit of other pupils.

“A textbook has a lifespan of five years and if all books were returned it would save the department millions, which could be used in other priority areas.”

The department has urged schools to report any shortages of textbooks to district offices, saying they will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that all deliveries take place. —