Put children’s needs above politics
The ANC Youth League Eastern Cape provincial executive committee has noted with concern the major challenges faced by a large number of pupils in the province due to an inadequacy in the scholar transport system.
This challenge has seen a number of deserving pupils in the province, especially in the Nelson Mandela and Sarah Baartman regions, not being transported to and from school.
As a result, these pupils have had to walk long distances to attend school, in pursuit of a better education and future.
Many pupils are missing school entirely, as the closest schools to their places of residence are many kilometres away and not within walking distance.
The delay in the consolidation of routes and awarding of transport tenders has become a problem that is causing a serious inconvenience to pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.
We call on the department of education, the department of transport, service providers and all relevant stakeholders to plan adequately and speedily to provide efficient, safe and sufficient scholar transport for every pupil that qualifies.
The scholar transport programme is intended to ferry pupils to get them to school on time with their energy preserved to go through each school day.
An inability to do this adequately, means that pupils are unable to go to school, or that they get there with their energy depleted for those who walk long distances.
The relevant departments, service providers and stakeholders must therefore arrest the situation before it becomes an even bigger crisis.
We are confident that our government will put all hands on deck and find a solution to the problem.
With that said, we are aware of and condemn the use of the plight of the poor by the DA and other opposition parties as a means to score cheap political points.
We are not naive to the DA using every opportunity it can get to exploit situations and electioneer towards elections.
Its sudden display of fake consciousness is nothing but a theatrical performance to trigger the emotions of our people, using genuine challenges as a disguise to their true agenda which is to remove the sitting government, to the benefit of those who are well off.
We are confident in the ability of our government to resolve its challenges and commend it for the ongoing efforts which have been made to improve the lives of our people, in particular the poor.
Lastly, we are calling on all ANC Youth League structures on the ground to protect pupils during this difficult time.
Working hand in hand with local structures such as the CPF and the SAPS, we must ensure the safety and wellbeing of our pupils while a solution is being devised by the relevant departments.
Pupils who are walking to and from school are at risk of being assaulted, raped, harassed, forced into doing drugs and many other crimes.
We therefore need to work with our communities, community leaders and all stakeholders in ensuring that pupils arrive at and return from school safely.
We trust the leadership of the ANC and our government to resolve the matter as soon as possible to ensure minimal effect on the academic calendar and wellbeing of our pupils. No pupil must walk to school.
“We need to create the pathways to give hope to our youth that they can have the opportunity through education and hard work to escape the trap of poverty. ”— Chris Hani