Pupils starving: now outages delay payments

The payments of school operational funds to 35 schools that were excluded from the government’s 2018-19 financial year budget due to a blunder by the department of education have now been delayed by power outages.

The department of education admitted its mistake and promised to pay the funds at the beginning of August, but has failed to do so.

Earlier this month, the Dispatch reported on how a careless mistake by the department of education resulted in more than 2,500 pupils from mostly poor rural homes, at 35 primary schools, receiving no food as part of the National School Nutrition Programme for five months. The schools in Dutywa and Butterworth were excluded from the 2018-19 financial funding when the department mistakenly declared them closed, when in fact they were still operational.

The schools have received no financial support from the state since April 1, and have had no funds for the nutritional programme, maintenance or for learning and teaching support materials. Provincial education spokesperson Malibongwe Mtima on Thursday initially told the Dispatch that the payments had been made on August 15.

But he later backtracked, saying the money had not been deposited into the schools’ accounts because the department’s head office in Zwelitsha had experienced power outages in the past two two weeks.

Dayimane Primary principal Mpisi Matshayana said the department had given the schools numerous empty promises.

Matshayana said members of a crisis committee consisting of principals, school governing body members and teachers’ unions planned to take legal action against the department.

“The children are starving and their education is being jeopardised,” he said.

The children are starving and their education is being jeopardised