SCHÄFER ‘DID NOT SERVE ALL EQUALLY’
EDUCATION MEC Debbie Schäfer’s sudden resignation could be viewed as a chance for Premier Alan Winde’s government to start giving attention to the plight of ignored township schools, say education activists and opposition parties.
Schäfer tendered her resignation to Winde on Wednesday.
In a statement, Winde said he would announce new changes to his provincial cabinet today. Speculation has been rife as this could also mean the filling of the post left vacant by axed Community Safety MEC Albert Fritz.
In a joint statement yesterday, Schäfer said she was “ready to bow out of public life” and had been offered a job in the legal sector in the UK.
She will leave office with effect from May 15.
“I have been in politics now for 20 years, serving in all three spheres of government. I believe I have made valuable contributions in each. It has been my great privilege to have served as provincial Minister (MEC) of Education in the Western Cape government for the last eight years. I believe I have left the department in a better place than I found it, and am proud of the work that we have, together, achieved,” Schäfer said.
She said she remained committed to the DA and had no intention of resigning her membership.
Winde said under Schäfer, the Western Cape had the highest bachelor pass rate in the country and had reached its highest retention rate ever.
“Debbie also oversaw the establishment of the Schools Evaluation Authority, the first in the country.
“She has been dedicated to supporting poor schools, with 61% of schools in the Western Cape now being ‘no-fee’ schools.”
Khayelitsha Development Forum (KDF) chairperson Ndithini Tyhido said: “As Education MEC she focused more on party political flirtations. A single example of her negligence is the perpetuation of another ‘Life Esidimeni’ in the form of the Khayelitsha Special School which is home to more than 400 learners living with different ailments and disabilities. In MEC Schäfer’s eyes there was nothing special about the school including the children in it.
“It was never changed physically to accommodate the needs of those children, to a point that more than two have lost their lives.
“An education MEC should be a person with compassion and not be racially discriminatory in discharging their mandate.”
The KDF hopes that Premier Winde would choose a woman or a man that would see all township schools as deserving of the Western Cape Department of Education’s attention.”
ANC spokesperson on education Khalid Sayed said while Schäfer claimed to leave the department a better place than she had found it, this contrasted with the lived experiences of learners and educators.
“She is the MEC who oversaw the Western Cape as it slipped from a top performer in the matric results to number 3 nationally.
“As she leaves public office, we thank her for her service and wish her well in her future endeavours.”
Sayed added that the DA could not deliver equality and justice in education regardless of who the premier appointed.
EFF provincial spokesperson Andisiwe Madikazi said: “Debbie has done nothing but harbour racism in the Western Cape private schools. Lest we forget, it was Debbie who publicly said that the exclusion of black pupils from the Brackenfell High School matric function was not based on racism. She refused to release the investigative report into the Brackenfell High School matric function.”
The GOOD Party’s Brett Herron said they had had serious differences with Schäfer’s approach to leading access to basic education.
“We wish her well in her new role in the UK.”
Naptosa Western Cape said although there had been major differences along the way, Schäfer must be commended for her work ethic, consistency and commitment to education.