WEDNESDAY, 5 MARCH 2003 _____

                PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
                                _____

The House met at 15:04.

The Speaker took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS - see col 000.

The SPEAKER: We now come to the motion on the Order Paper. Before we deal with this, I need to advise you that earlier this afternoon I received a letter from Mr Yengeni. It’s very simple. He says:

I forthwith resign from Parliament.

[Applause.]

In the light of this, I think this motion needs to be reconsidered, but I will proceed with the speakers’ list on this matter.

         APPOINTMENT OF COMMITTEE TO DEAL WITH YENGENI ISSUE

                         (Draft Resolution)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Madam Speaker, hon members, on 28 March 2001, hon Tony Sithembiso Yengeni made a statement to this House. On 13 February 2003, Mr Yengeni pleaded guilty in the Regional Court for the Regional Division of the Northern Transvaal to a charge of fraud, and admitted that he had unlawfully and with intent to defraud falsely and to the prejudice of the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa failed to disclose that he had received a benefit in the form of a discount, and made a number of misrepresentations.

The ANC believes that in order to achieve a political order in South Africa that is open and transparent and accountable, as envisaged in the Constitution, it is essential that the integrity of public representatives and that of the political institutions in which they serve be beyond question.

An HON MEMBER: Hear, hear!

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: The ANC is fully committed to the principles and practices of transparent and accountable governance. [Interjections.] We are committed to upholding and defending, among other things, the integrity of all public institutions, and this Parliament in particular.

Therefore, the ANC views the above admissions made by Mr Yengeni in a very serious light. And, in view of the above, the ANC believes that Mr Yengeni has done the honourable thing by resigning as a member of Parliament. [Applause.]

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam Speaker, this matter will not be finished until Parliament has expressed its opinion about the matter. For that reason, I think that we should adopt a motion, and I want to move the following motion:

That paragraphs 1 and 2 as printed on the Order Paper be followed by:

(3) notes that Mr Yengeni today resigned from the National Assembly;

(4) censures Mr Yengeni for abusing the protection of the Chair and of the Rules to deliberately mislead the House with the intention of defrauding Parliament.

Hon MEMBERS: Hear, hear!

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: In motivation of this motion, I want to state the following: Firstly, we note that Mr Yengeni has resigned. We welcome that fact. We think he should have resigned weeks ago.

Why is it that the ANC’s first reaction is always to close ranks around the corrupt and the crooks? Instead of setting an example to the nation, the ANC seems always to side with those who’ve transgressed, and never seems to side with the honest people of our country.

You underestimate the anger of ordinary people about corruption in our country generally, and about the Yengeni matter in particular. [Interjections.] The message which goes out to the people is that the ANC does not act quickly and firmly and unflinchingly against those who should be disciplined. [Interjections.]

The SPEAKER: Order, Mr Gibson!

Mr M RAMGOBIN: Madam Speaker, I think the custodians …

The SPEAKER: Mr Ramgobin, are you rising on a point of order?

Mr M RAMGOBIN: I’m rising on a point of order.

The SPEAKER: Will you please deal with the point of order!

Mr M RAMGOBIN: Is it parliamentary to impute guilt by association, Madam Prime Minister, to a political organisation of which we are members? [Interjections.]

The SPEAKER: I didn’t hear anything unparliamentary, but I will look at the Hansard to see if there was.

Mr Gibson, I do, however, want to raise an issue now that we’ve stopped, and that concerns the fact that you were moving an amendment to a motion that has not been put to the House.

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: No, Madam, I was not moving an amendment. I moved a motion.

The SPEAKER: So, you were moving a motion without notice?

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: I am moving a motion, yes. [Interjections.]

The SPEAKER: Order, please! You cannot move a motion without notice unless there is agreement. [Interjections.]

Are there objections to a motion without notice?

Hon MEMBERS: Yes!

The SPEAKER: Mr Gibson, you may speak to whatever statement you wish to make, because I did call you for that, but not move a motion.

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam, the message which goes out to the people is that the ANC …

The SPEAKER: Before you proceed, I just wish to make clear to the House that there is no motion before the House. [Interjections.]

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: If that’s what the House wants to do.

The message which goes out to the people is that the ANC does not act quickly and firmly and unflinchingly against those who should be disciplined. Instead, the ANC delays and delays and delays, hoping that the matter can be minimised or explained away or settled behind closed doors. [Interjections.]

Mr Yengeni should have resigned the moment he confessed to lying to Parliament with intent to defraud. Upon his failure to resign, the ANC should have used its power to fire him immediately. [Interjections.] Instead, it’s being forced to act under duress and pressure from the opposition, from civil society, from the media and from the Speaker. [Interjections.] Confidence in Parliament has been undermined, because there was no prompt response from the leadership of the party. The ANC and all parties - I stress ``all parties’’ - need to learn from this disgraceful episode. Swift action by leaders retains and restores public confidence in politicians when the few corrupt politicians transgress. [Interjections.]

Hon members also need to know that if one of them abuses the protection of the Chair and abuses the protection of the Rules, and deliberately misleads the House, there is a heavy price to pay. [Applause.] [Interjections.]

Mrs L R MBUYAZI: Madam Speaker, the IFP welcomes the decision by the hon Mr Yengeni to resign. We feel it was the honourable thing to do at this time. We also support the withdrawal of the motion which was on the Order Paper today.

The IFP feels sorry for Mr Yengeni on a personal level, and for the family and also for the House for the difficulties caused.

The fact that Mr Yengeni has resigned allows for Parliament to leave Mr Yengeni’s case with the courts in respect of sanctions and punishment. [Applause.]

Mr J DURAND: Madam Speaker, we welcome the resignation of Mr Tony Yengeni after admitting that he misled Parliament. There is a convention in parliaments across the world that, when something like this happens, the member involved does the honourable thing by resigning. In doing so, the member protects the integrity of the house and also the political organisation to which he or she belongs.

The Speaker, Frene Ginwala, is to be congratulated on her principled stand that the Yengeni issue must be dealt with efficiently and very quickly. It has preserved the integrity of this Parliament.

When Mr Profumo, a member of the British Parliament, had an affair with a prostitute, tongues started wagging. In the time-honoured English way, Mr Profumo’s issue would have been swept under the carpet, but Mr Profumo made a fundamental error - he lied to the House of Commons. In March 1963, he told the chamber that there was no impropriety whatsoever in his relationship with Keeler. Ten weeks later, he appeared before the MPs again to say with deep remorse that he had misled the House, and wanted to resign.

Mr Tony Yengeni admitted to serious indiscretions, and pleaded guilty in a court of law. By resigning, he is doing the honourable thing - protecting the integrity of Parliament, respecting the people who voted for him and honouring the political party that sent him to Parliament. We need no committee to ascertain the facts. Mr Yengeni has admitted guilt. He should, with deep remorse, apologise to Parliament and go.

In the words of Mr Manuel, ``It’s the right thing to do.’’ Politicians who lie to Parliament have only one avenue: They must exit the scene as soon as possible.

Mr C T FROLICK: Madam Speaker and hon members, the resignation of Mr Yengeni is indeed the right thing to do, but it is a shame that it took him so long to decide to tender his resignation. It is also a pity that the Yengeni saga took so much of Parliament’s time and that of its programme.

It is indeed, in the first place, the responsibility of all parliamentarians, irrespective of political affiliation, to be the custodians of the credibility of the institution, and we have a duty to the people of South Africa to be accountable. We must avoid engaging in unnecessary processes and procrastination that could create the impression that we are willing to turn a blind eye to actions that undermine this institution.

We therefore would like to congratulate you, Madam Speaker, for the principled stance you have taken in dealing with this matter. Indeed, you have demonstrated your ability to act above party politics in order to protect the integrity of this Parliament. [Applause.]

Mr L M GREEN: Madam Speaker, the ACDP welcomes the notice of the resignation of the hon Yengeni. We believe he has done the honourable thing. It is a sad matter to us that a member of Parliament’s career comes to end in such a manner. We as the ACDP do not rejoice in his fall. It is a sad day for him. It is a sad day for his family, and it is a sad day for his party.

Let this be a lesson to all of us to walk circumspectly, never to mislead the Speaker and this House. We commend the Speaker for the stance that she took and the example that she set. [Applause.]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Madam Speaker and hon members, it comes as no surprise that Mr Yengeni has eventually thrown in the towel after the protracted merry-go-round he led this House on. It is the most honourable thing he could have done to save this House from further disrepute.

In fact, the resignation is long overdue. It should have happened as soon as he was charged. While we remain with the mammoth task of restoring the pride and dignity of the House, we should learn from this experience. All parties should resolve that never again will they allow a situation like this to develop; never again will they allow their members to use the institution for personal aggrandisement at the expense of Parliament and the entire nation.

Let us close the Yengeni chapter and start all over again to rebuild and remould our brand, which is the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa. [Applause.]

The SPEAKER: I just wish to apologise. I read from the speakers’ list without noticing who was rising …

Mrs P DE LILLE: Madam Speaker, I never regretted the day I stood up in Parliament three years ago to call for a judicial commission of inquiry. Today I have been vindicated, thank God! [Applause.] Many people tried to cover up, including many members in this House, but there is one thing we must all learn - hon Mr Essop Pahad - that even though you are the majority, you cannot suppress the truth. The truth will always survive; the truth will always triumph. [Interjections.]

I want to thank our independent judiciary for the sterling work that they are doing. We want to thank the Scorpions for the work that they are doing. Finally, Madam Speaker, we thank you for your courage in putting your foot down and saying that he must resign. That was a good thing to do. It was the right thing to do. We respect you for that. [Interjections.] [Applause.]

Mr J P I BLANCHÉ: Madam Speaker, not so long away, an MEC from Mpumalanga said ``Politicians may lie’’. That is another way of telling a politician that he is likely to be protected by his party when he does so. We say No. Politicians who lie and commit corruption must be expelled from their party and automatically from Parliament. The governing party must prove to the nation that they can be trusted to take charge of the moral regeneration programme by discharging corrupt members from their ranks and not even allowing them to come back to the precincts of Parliament. Parties must suspend their members, and not ask Parliament to slap the hands of those who break parliamentary codes. Government has already spent enough taxpayers’ money on Mr Yengeni and the court case. Why just reprimand him? Why waste more of Parliament’s time on a member who admits that he has committed fraud and lied to the nation?

The FA appeals to all parties to give status and respectability back to Parliament by suspending the members of Parliament who break the code of conduct. [Applause.]

Mr C AUCAMP: Madam Speaker, we’ve seen, in these two days, that the golden rule in Parliament is: You return if you win your court case, but if not, you can’t. [Interjections.]

It was the right thing to do for Mr Yengeni to resign. I do not want to throw punches at somebody who is no longer in the ring, but the ANC, its leadership, and its Whippery is still in the ring, and I want to address my punches to them. Why did we get the impression that this thing would be swept under the carpet? Why the long delay? Why the motion to resolve this thing behind closed doors, against what the Speaker had said?

May we learn from this that we must be open, that we must advance the truth and that Parliament and its …

… waardigheid altyd behou moet word. [Applous.] [… dignity must always be preserved. [Applause.]]

The SPEAKER: That brings us to the end of the speakers’ list.

Before proceeding with the Order Paper, I do want to draw attention to the fact that an important issue for the integrity of Parliament has arisen through this particular case. What remains to be done is that we need to consider, independently of party-political positions, how Parliament should deal with cases where members deliberately mislead the House.

I hope we will return to that and look at it as a united Parliament.

                 VISITS TO MPUMALANGA AND FREE STATE

    (Consideration of Report of Portfolio Committee on Education)

Prof S M MAYATULA: Madam Speaker and hon members, from 22 to 24 July 2002 two multiparty delegations of the Portfolio Committee on Education, made up of five members and one official each, visited Mpumalanga and Free State provinces respectively. Both provinces were invited to come to this debate. If they are represented here I would like to welcome their representatives.

In those three days they visited a total of 38 schools at a cost of about R140 000 of the taxpayers’ money. The big question is whether these visits added any value to the lives of our people. The answer is a big yes.

Recommendation (b) under Mpumalanga states, and I quote: ``Communication between the MEC’s office and the district officers, as well as between the district officers and the schools, needs drastic improvement.’’ There is a big communication and knowledge gap between these offices. To the delegation’s shock, the regional and district officials who accompanied them were equally surprised when the schools narrated their frustrations about delivery. One could not help but feel that they were visiting their own schools for the first time with the delegation.

Our people in the communities are crying out for help. They need shoulders to cry on. They expect us to stretch our hands of friendship and attend to their queries. They expect us to enlighten them on the rules that govern their institutions.

Ngelishwa, abantu bakuthi abakakhululeki nangona uMgaqo-siseko usixelela ngokucacileyo ukuba sonke siyalingana, nokuba unguMongameli, nokuba ungumphathiswa, nokuba ukhokela isebe. NgokoMgaqo-siseko wethu, sonke siyalingana. Simele ukuba sikwazi ukubamba ifoni xa sinengxaki, sibuze nakowuphi na umntu njengabemi beli lizwe. (Translation of Xhosa paragraph follows.)

[Prof S M MAYATULA: Unfortunately, our people are not yet free even though the Constitution tells us clearly that we are all equal, whether you are a President, a Minister or a head of a department. According to the Constitution of this country, we are all equal. As citizens of this country we therefore should be able to pick up the telephone when we have and speak to someone else.

Despite that, there is nothing as gratifying as receiving a call from one of the schools we visited, asking for assistance in one way or another. We have experienced this in many instances. We have managed to pass on the information to the relevant MECs and such problems were attended to immediately, to the delight of the schools.

The members of the executive, whether at the provincial or national level, with the best of intentions, cannot be everywhere. They also need us as members of this House to be their eyes and ears. We cannot do that while seated in this Chamber. Let us go out and dirty our hands. Our people need us.

Despite the many challenges facing these provinces, to which we are going to refer later - and the members of delegations are going to do that - it was exciting to learn that in Mpumalanga, for example, the department’s budget for learner-support material, that is stationery and textbooks, has increased by 100% from R68 million in 2001-02, to R136 million in 2002-03. Secondly, school transport was provided for only 400 learners in 1994. This increased to 2 700 in 2000, and to 6 800 in 2002 - an increase of 1 700%.

In the Free State, the delegation was so impressed by the role played by some of the farmers in the education arena that the committee has recommended to the Minister that some of these farmers be invited to come and grace this House when he tables his budget.

On 4 November 2002, soon after receiving our draft report, even before it was officially tabled in the ATC, which was done on 13 December 2002, the MEC for education in Mpumalanga, Comrade Padayachee, graciously responded in writing and committed his department to attend to the problems of each of the schools we visited. To illustrate this point, I will now refer to three such schools.

First is Silamba Senior Secondary School. One of its problems was the shortage of furniture. He responded, and I quote: ``The department has not received requests for furniture from this school for 2002, but it will be purchased in 2003.’’

On renovations and toilets, the MEC reports, and I quote: ``The regional office will be requested to consider the prioritisation of the school for renovations and the provision of toilets next year.’’ In this case, 2003.

Regarding Makerana Primary School, one of the schools we visited, the MEC had this to say, and I quote: ``The quality of furniture procured for schools, which is in accordance with SA Bureau of Standards specifications, will be purchased in 2003.’’

Let me take the third and last school, namely Hlonipha Secondary School. About the shortage of classrooms, the MEC had this to say, and I quote: The regional office will be requested to consider the inclusion of the school in the priority list for the 2003 school year for the provision of eight additional classrooms.'' On the shortage of furniture he had this to say, and I quote:Furniture will be purchased for the school next year.’’

In most of these cases, owing to communication breakdown and the lack of acceptance of the freedom that one has to pick up a phone and talk to whoever, many schools had not filled out the necessary requisition forms. As a result they were left in limbo. Thanks to our visit, their problems will be attended to, as the MEC has indicated.

We are convinced that our recommendations, which are contained in that ATC report, will strengthen the hands of both the national Minister and the MECs in their endeavours to push back the frontiers of poverty. This is part of our oversight and monitoring responsibilities.

I would like to thank the MECs, Comrade Kganare and Padayachee, and their officials for their warm welcome, assistance and co-operation, without which these visits would have failed. A word of thanks goes to all the schools we visited for giving us their time and for sharing their dreams. Together we can and will make a difference.

We would like to challenge especially members from Mpumalanga and Free State to read this report and assist us to monitor the situation. As indicated in the report, the committee will be inviting the MECs for an update on all these issues.

I would also like to commend the teams that visited these provinces. They were there not with different ideological mind-sets, but as a team in order to assist so that we can be in a position to do what we are supposed to do

• assist our people improve their lives. I thank you.

Mr E K MOORCROFT: Chairperson, my colleague the hon Ntuli, who is our spokesperson, cannot be with us this afternoon, so I am standing in for him.

It is sad to record that the previous government regarded education for black children as a privilege, not as a right. Black learners on farms were completely at the mercy of farm owners who could open a school on a farm or close it as they deemed fit. The net effect was that the farm school system was haphazard, fragmented and poorly co-ordinated.

While the physical conditions and provisioning of farm schools reflect a significant improvement from the previous regime, there are certain matters that need redress. These include, firstly, the incredibly long distances that many farm children have to walk to and from schools. This ranges from eight kilometres, as is the case with learners at Bonong Primary School, to 20 kilometres for some learners attending Hanover Combined School. It is difficult to imagine how a child can learn effectively when physically exhausted by the long walk. Coming from a desperately poor family, the child is probably also very hungry.

Secondly, to aggravate matters, the child at school is often deprived of his or her fair share of the primary school nutrition programme because, in many cases, there is no proper monitoring of the delivery of food materials, as well as how and when the food is distributed.

The other notable weakness in the farm school education system is the unavoidable multigrade tuition, unavoidable because of low enrolment. This means that the teacher finds himself or herself handling two or three different grades of learners simultaneously, often in groups of 20 or 30. What is problematic is not the number of class groups but different grades of learners and, consequently, the different levels of intellectual, emotional and knowledge-level backgrounds. It must have been difficult enough under the previous traditional method of teaching which was teacher-oriented. How these teachers manage to cope with their present responsibilities operating with the outcomes-based education methodology is beyond comprehension. However, underpinning all these problems is the virtual lack of any early childhood development education programme. This is because of a lack of funds and infrastructure to put it into place.

It is envisaged by the Free State education authorities officials that Grade R will be a compulsory year of schooling by the year 2008. The Free State department would prefer to have the process completed by the end of

1. There does, however, seem to be one possible solution to these problems. We need to move to a hostel-based system of education. Busing these children is just not economically viable, given the fluctuating rural school population and the ongoing process of urbanisation. The hostel-based school system at certain strategic centres will have the following advantages: it will, in the long run, reduce administrative costs by pooling human resources, teachers and learners, and physical resources in a lesser number of central points; it will make teaching and learning more effective by eliminating cumbersome multigrade teaching; it will result in larger learner enrolment and a larger teaching corps, and it will put an end to the daily stress and strain of learners having to walk or travel long distances to and from school.

But, Mr Minister, here I want to make an appeal: What we do not want is for schools to be closed in rural areas without anything being put as a replacement in its place. This has happened, and I can speak from personal experience in the Eastern Cape.

Now, the urban community surveyed did not present a pleasant picture. Bethlehem Comprehensive School is a case in point. The school management and teachers operate as they wish. Meetings are irregular and only happen when there is a crisis. According to the principal, the school is managing absenteeism and teacher performance, yet, some teachers reported differently. The Grade 12 pass rate indicates something is seriously wrong with the management of the school. The low pass rate of 34% in 1994, 30% in 1995, 8% in 2000 and 24% in 2001 makes depressing reading. This is a tragic waste of children’s learning time and taxpayers’ money. The DA calls on the Department of Education to take drastic measures to remedy this crisis.

Yet, these sad experiences were mingled with elements of satisfaction and joy. For example, some white farmers have walked the extra mile to improve the situation. Here, in this respect, the hon Mayatula also gave credit to them. They have improved the situation by offering good education opportunities to their workers’ children.

Moboloka Primary School is situated near an informal settlement. The principal and staff are doing their best to help these children break the cycle of poverty and misery. What is more commendable is the fact that the school is twinning with Eunice Secondary and Botlehadi School, both being better-resourced schools. In this way, the schools share resources and knowledge, thereby jointly enhancing their service delivery.

We commend these men and women for their good work because, for many black children, a sound education is the only escape route from helplessness, vulnerability and poverty. We are indebted to Parliament for the opportunity to visit provinces and acknowledge the kind reception we received in those provinces. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr B M DOUGLAS: Mr Chairperson, it is unfortunate that Mr Mpontshane cannot be here today. Since he was present on this visit and I wasn’t, I shall be his carbon copy today. Just consider me a messenger in the classical sense of the word. Mr Mpontshane had the following to say.

The purpose of the visit was not a fault-finding mission, after all this is not the function of the committee. Our job is to hold the executive accountable. The hon Minister of Education presented this House with a report on the conditions at schools. In this report the hon the Minister painted a picture of the infrastructure which was improving, but which still left a lot to be desired in the form of, inter alia, toilets, running water, electricity and transport for learners. The committee, therefore, undertook to see for itself how the system was doing as far as the above infrastructural conditions were concerned.

Another aspect of the system which concerned the committee was the provision and supply of learner materials to schools. Hon members will remember that the House did debate last year the chaotic situation in the Eastern Cape as far as this aspect was concerned. It showed the committee that the supply of learner support materials to schools was a perennial problem in the two provinces that we visited.

My party was represented on a team that went to Mpumalanga. Yes, we came and we saw, but we did not conquer. The first weakness in the system that was common to all schools was accountability. Almost all schools we visited did not have learner support materials, some of them in very crucial grades. Everybody, from the school principals to the office of the MEC, gave contradictory reasons as to why books were not delivered. The glaring cause, however, was that those who had been awarded tenders to deliver the material did not have the capacity to deliver. We would therefore propose that we eliminate the intermediaries. Let schools order straight from the supplier. We believe this system would improve the situation.

A second weakness we observed is that of discipline. Where discipline is nonexistent it leads to many other evils, namely absenteeism, drug abuse and a high failure rate. The hon the Minister should exercise serious thoughts about TV shows such as Yizo Yizo. My colleagues will confirm that we saw this programme being replayed in one of the schools we visited. The hairstyles, dress and language was unbelievable. Even the principal had a certain type of uniform on that conforms with something from Yizo Yizo. We plead with the Minister to remove some of these false ``educational’’ shows. They are having an unintended influence in our schools. Instead of bringing about moral development, they bring moral decay.

One of the programmes of the department has been the development of educational districts. District officials, or inspectors in the old terminology, have neither power nor authority. Transformation does not mean to jettison the old, but it means blending the old and the new. We are not exaggerating, but inspectors did not know what was happenening in some of the schools. Some senior secondary schools had become dysfunctional. To help such schools from sinking further, the power and authority of inspectors in both the districts and the school governing bodies must be strengthened. However, all is not doom and gloom.

Mev M E OLCKERS: Voorsitter, die twee provinsies wat besoek is, is albei provinsies wat in ‘n groot mate arm en landelik is. Ek wil soos my kollega mnr Moorcroft ook fokus op die plaasskole soos dit in die verslag bespreek is, maar ook in die algemeen.

As ons die oproep van die President ernstig wil opneem, naamlik dat armoede met hand en tand beveg moet word, sal plaasskole spesiale aandag moet kry. Onderwys en geletterdheid is die fundamentele hoekstene van die bestryding van armoede deur middel van bemagtiging en menswaardigheid.

Uit persoonlike ondervinding en besoeke weet ek die meerderheid plaasskole het dikwels nie lopende water nie, en baie het geen toiletgeriewe nie en geen elektrisiteit nie. Baie van die skole het nie één van bogenoemde nie. Leerders moet baie kilometers stap om by die skool en terug by die huis te kom. Daar is leerders wat tot vier uur per dag moet stap om by die skool te kom. Baie keer reën dit en dan kom hulle papnat by die skool aan en moet hulle die hele dag in nat klere sit. Dit lei tot verkoues en siektes, en maak dit onmoontlik om te konsentreer op die werk.

By baie van die skole het die skoolhoofde nie eens kantore nie en is daar geen personeelkamer nie. Daar sal weer gekyk moet word na die vervoer vir leerders of daar sal ‘n tipe koshuis by die skole opgerig moet word. Dit kan baie basies wees en die kinders kan naweke huistoe gaan. Daar is sulke geriewe by ‘n plaasskool in die Wes-Kaap. Innoverende planne sal gemaak moet word om hierdie juwele in die samelewing van ondergang te red.

‘n Mens hoor byna nooit van dwelmmisbruik by dié skole nie, en net so min van bedrog deur die hoof en die onderwysers. In die verslag word talle kere gemeld dat van die skole wat besoek is, geen stukkende ruite gehad het nie. ‘n Arm plaasskool het onlangs R600 bestee om hulle ruite te vervang. Dit is ‘n voorbeeld van hoe ons die maatskaplike ingesteldheid van Suid-Afrikaners wil hê. Die toegewyde en aardse eerlikheid van die ouers en onderwysers in die platteland is ‘n voorbeeld vir almal van ons, veral vir ons in hierdie Huis.

Hier sit ons in luuksheid en ons werk in aangename omstandighede, maar wat is die voorbeeld wat ons as topleiers in die land stel aan hierdie mense van wie ek gepraat het? ‘n Vorige agb lid - ‘n mens kan maar sê in die huidige verlede, so onlangs is dit - het nie alleen ‘n onwaarheid oor korrupsie in hierdie Huis verkondig nie; hy het spesiaal gevra om ‘n spreekbeurt in hierdie Huis te kry om die volk te mislei.

‘n Ander agb lid is byna nooit in die Parlement nie en ná nege jaar is daar nou ‘n ondersoek gelas na haar optrede. Toe sy gedissiplineer word, appelleer sy. Sy sê in die media een van die redes vir haar afwesigheid is dat sy nie kans sien om met sekere kollegas in een vertrek te wees nie, maar dis vir haar aanvaarbaar dat haar salaristjek deur mense van dieselfde kleur uitgeskryf word en in ‘n bank met meesal mense van dieselfde kleur verwerk word.

Watter voorbeeld stel sekere lede van hierdie Huis aan die mense, die onderwysers en die leerders van onder meer plaasskole, om na te streef? Dit is skandalig dat ons almal wat politici is oor dieselfde kam geskeer word.

Ek vra die Regering om dissiplinêr sterk op te tree teen politici wat vir ander in dieselfde beroep ‘n groot verleentheid veroorsaak, en om hulle nie te beskerm nie. Ry ‘n slag met julle Mercedesse en julle 4X4’s en baie lyfwagte na die plaasskole van ons land en gaan leer toegewydheid en eerlikheid by hulle wat die daaglikse lewe daar leef, baie keer siek, moeg en sonder kos, maar edel en trots op die geleentheid wat hulle gegun word.

Ons in die Nuwe NP salueer die mense van ons plaasskole. Ons vra die Minister om na hulle te kyk. Dankie. (Translation of Afrikaans speech follows.)

[Mrs M E OLCKERS: Chairperson, the two provinces that were visited are both provinces which are, to a large extent, poor and rural. Like my colleague Mr Moorcroft, I also want to focus on the farm schools as discussed in the report, but also generally.

If we want to take the President’s call seriously, namely that poverty must be fought tooth and nail, farm schools will have to receive special attention. Education and literacy are the fundamental cornerstones of combating poverty by way of empowerment and dignity. From personal experience and visits, I know that the majority of farm schools often do not have running water, and many have no toilet facilities and no electricity. Many of the schools do not even have one of the aforementioned. Learners have to walk many kilometres to get to school and back home. There are learners who have to walk up to four hours a day to reach school. Often it is raining and they then arrive at school soaking wet and have to spend the whole day in wet clothes. This leads to colds and illnesses and makes it impossible to concentrate on the work.

At many of the schools the principals do not even have offices and there is no staff room. Transport for learners will have to be looked at again or a type of boarding school will have to be built at the schools. It can be very basic and the children can go home on weekends. Such facilities are available at a farm school in the Western Cape. Innovative plans will have to be made to save these jewels of society from ruin.

One almost never hears of drug abuse at these schools, and one hears equally little about fraud by the principal and the teachers. In the report it is mentioned numerous times that the schools which were visited had no broken windowpanes. A poor farm school recently spent R600 to replace their windowpanes. This is an example of the social attitude of South Africans that we would like to have. The dedicated and down-to-earth honesty of the parents and teachers in the rural areas is an example to us all, particularly us in this House.

Here we sit in luxury and we work under pleasant conditions, but what is the example that we as top leaders in the country set for these people I am talking about? A former hon member - one could say in the present past, it happened so recently - did not only state an untruth about corruption in this House; he specially requested speaking time in this House to mislead the nation.

Another hon member is virtually never in Parliament and after nine years an investigation into her behaviour has been launched. When she was disciplined, she appealed. She says in the media that one of the reasons for her absence is that she cannot be in the same room with certain colleagues, but it is acceptable to her that her salary cheque is written out by people of the same colour and processed in a bank with mostly people of the same colour.

What example do certain members of this House set for the people, the teachers and the learners of farm schools, inter alia, to follow? It is scandalous that all of us who are politicians are labelled with the same tag.

I am requesting the Government to take strong disciplinary action against politicians who cause others in the same profession a great deal of embarrassment, and not to protect them. Drive out in your Mercedeses and your 4X4s and with many bodyguards to the farm schools of our country and learn dedication and honesty from those who live their daily lives there; often sick, tired and without food, but noble and proud of the opportunity that they are being given. We in the New NP salute the people of our farm schools. We ask the Minister to take care of them. Thank you.]

Mrs C DUDLEY: Chairman, Minister, hon colleagues, observations made by the multiparty delegations confirm what appears to be the reality in schools in many constituencies. The ACDP concurs with recommendations made by the portfolio committee.

In the now not-so-limited time that I have to address you, I will endeavour to highlight some of the issues which we agree are of particular concern.

Firstly, the school nutrition programme that will soon become the responsibility of the Department of Education definitely needs urgent attention, especially in light of its disgraceful track record under the management of the Health department. Hon Minister, it appears adequate planning will have to include provision for sufficient monitors and inspectors to stop crooked suppliers and school officials from operating with impunity. In Mpumalanga alone, a forensic audit revealed widespread corruption by suppliers, teachers and, in some cases, even parents. One company supplying 80 schools in a district near White River stands accused of charging massive amounts for food it never delivered, and shame-faced principals at four primary schools in other areas, hard hit by Aids, unemployment and malnutrition, have admitted to investigators that they signed for bogus deliveries.

The report recommends, with specific reference to Mpumalanga again, that learner support material, or LSM, OBE material, stationery and textbooks get special attention, and that procurement procedures of LSM be tightened up to enhance accountability.

On 18 October 2002 the Middelburg Observer reported on a shocking discovery at a recycling company in Middelburg which highlights these problems. Six tons of Curriculum 2005 OBE textbooks, printed in the year 2000 in various languages for Grades 0-9, were discovered still wrapped in plastic on the recycling floor. Company employees said that tons and tons had already been destroyed and the company produced documents from the department authorising disposal of the books. The department’s deputy director and the investigating officer have confirmed this week that arrests of officials linked to the selling of the textbooks should take place soon, thanks to the diligence of the concerned citizen and ACDP member who reported the unexpected find.

Within many schools educators face enormous challenges with regard to discipline and many express the view that corporal punishment should be reinstated as alternatives prove ineffective. While abuse of any kind, including discipline, should not be tolerated and must be dealt with, it does not help to remove effective measures across the board - just in case. Adequate sanitation too is of course critical to the health of the nation and has to be a priority.

A presentation in February by the Department of Education on plans for 2003- 04 placed school safety issues, including gun-free zones, the cost of education and a comprehensive response to HIV/Aids on the agenda, and referred to the implementation of the Revised Curriculum Statement as an ongoing mandate.

As training of teachers on values reflected in the curriculum, moral renewal and the fight against racism will be priorities for Government, public participation will be necessary to allay concerns as the values propounded in the curriculum have previously been a point of contention, and Government’s interpretation of morality has also been questioned. In line with the recommendations, which call for greater emphasis on HIV/Aids awareness, the ACDP is calling for funds to be made available for schools to access material based on proven moral values which build healthy individuals and families instead of the liberal and licentious sex education presently imposed on provinces.

Finally, the ACDP agrees that improved communication between the MEC’s office and district offices, as well as between district offices and schools, is essential. Thank you. Mrs D G NHLENGETHWA: Chairperson, hon members, the Constitution guarantees that all South Africans have the right to basic education, including adult education. Our immediate strategic objective is to create a united nonracial, nonsexist and democratic South Africa.

Coming as we do from an apartheid era that had an education system that sought to erode the reproduction of a black intelligentsia and whose policy of Bantu education was aimed at destroying institutions which produced African intellectuals and professionals, and replacing them with forms of learning that stifled critical thinking, creativity and innovation, we grew up knowing that government was a big untouchable dinosaur based in Pretoria. Now that is no more.

However, the pedagogical efficiency of our system in terms of curriculum delivery and learner achievement still needs to be strengthened. Many children, mostly in rural areas, do not know where to go after finishing their matric in terms of whether they should take up temporary work or continue with their studies. Some learners face the challenge of poorly resourced environments at school and at home.

I wish to quote from a statement made by the hon Minister of Education at the GSIS parliamentary media briefing on 15 August 2002. He said, and I quote:

Education sits at the top among those critical instruments to achieve the goal of releasing our people from the jaws of poverty.

The Portfolio Committee on Education undertook a provincial visit to Mpumalanga and the Free State which was aimed at focusing on adult basic education, early childhood development, programmes on HIV/Aids, primary nutrition, scholar transport, etc. There was a common outcry in almost all the schools we visited regarding issues such as late distribution of stationery and learner support material; overcrowding which leads to the shortage of classrooms; there is a pilot project on inclusive education that is moving slowly because schools are not user-friendly to learners who are in wheelchairs and, regarding deaf learners, a programme for bringing in teachers for sign language is moving slowly.

We also visited a dysfunctional school, ie Masizakhe High School, where the principal was unable to introduce his school management team as he was unfamiliar with who they were. There was in-fighting among the staff where individual interest was pursued at the expense of children’s education. The matric pass rate was very low, with no prospects for improvement.

We visited the school in January, and learning did not take place on the first day of school. There was chaos, and the Grades 8 and 11 students received their results on the opening day of school.

I wish to congratulate the department of education in Mpumalanga on taking disciplinary action against those teachers who were responsible for that situation. The principal was suspended, and five teachers were charged with misconduct and one was acquitted.

The President, in his state of the nation address, and the Minister of Finance, emphasised the fact that those public servants who are not willing to serve the nation mabahambe [must leave].

Two senior officials have been deployed to the school in question to normalise the situation, and a mentor principal has also been deployed to the school.

These visits created a very good working relationship between members deployed in the different constituencies and the Department of Education. In January we held a joint programme in which we worked together in visiting schools. I can confidently say we had service delivery in Mpumalanga. Jointly, we prioritised the building of additional classes in those schools which are overcrowded. In Mpumalanga there’s still a backlog of 4 000 classrooms that need to be built.

Four months after the visit of the committee, the office of the MEC sent a response to the report we had submitted to them. The response covered all the areas which needed attention in order to be attended to. This year there was early distribution of stationery and learner support material, as opposed to the late distribution during our visit.

In conclusion, an assessment of South Africa today indicates that the lives of our people are, by and large, gradually changing for the better. Access to basic services has been extended to millions of our people. This, indeed, shows that the ANC, through education, can push back the frontiers of poverty. Real quality learning can be achieved by staffing dynamic and vibrant schools with dedicated teachers who understand the moral of teaching.

We must create a cadre of teachers who are key agents in social projects of education.

Lunga lelihloniphekile Dudley, angati noma inhloko icinile yini, kodvwa ngive uphawula ngendzaba yekutsi … Angati nobe sebayakutolikela yini, kepha-ke utawukhuluma nebatali bakho lekungibo labakuncisha litfuba lekwati letinye tilwimi ngesikhatsi se-apartheid. Kwakutsiwa i-apartheid icindzetela tsine kantsi sicindzeteleka sonkhe ngobe naku nani animange nibe nalo litfuba lekufundza letinye tilwimi.

Utsi wena wekunene liTiko leteMfundvo litawucalisa nini umkhankhaso wekondla bantfwana etikolweni, kube wena sihlala nawe ekomitini futsi uyati kutsi kutawucalisa kulomnyaka lotako, kepha nyalo sewufika la utenta umuntfu longati futsi lofikako kulekomiti. [Kuhlaba lulwimi.]

Ngifuna kusho kini nine bekunene kutsi ngiyetsemba nivile kutsi siyahamba futsi siyasebenta kulomkhankhaso. Kutawufika labanye labatawubuka kuphela lapho kungakenteki khona lutfo. Siyati kutsi njengaloku … Nine bekunene, nine besidlukuladledle sakaLobamba, nine lenacedza lubombo ngekuhlehletela, ngiyabonga. [Kwaphela sikhatsi.] [Tandla.] (Translation of Siswati paragraphs follows.)

[I don’t know, hon Dudley, whether you are all that hard-headed. I heard you saying … I don’t know if someone is interpreting for you. Anyway, you will have to talk to your parents because they are responsible for your missing the opportunity of learning the other languages during the apartheid regime. You know, it was said that apartheid suppressed blacks only, and yet it suppressed all of us because here you are today, and you also did not have the privilege of learning other languages!

Hon member, you are now asking the Department of Education when it will start with the school feeding scheme campaign, yet you sit here with the committee and you know very well that the campaign will only be starting next year. But you now come here and pretend that you are new and innocent! [Interjections.]

I want to clearly state that I believe you have heard that in this campaign we are moving and are at work. Nevertheless, there will be some people who will see only where nothing has been done. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, the sons and daughters of the mighty Lion of Lobamba, King Sobhuza II, you who ran around the Lebombo Mountains to their end. [Time expired.] [Applause.]]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Chairperson and hon members, in its quest to improve the quality of life of the people out in the country, Parliament continues to send committees to gain first-hand information. Visits by the Portfolio Committee on Education to Mpumalanga and the Free State have brought to light that issues raised by Naptosa research have substance, despite what the Minister said in his response to the statement I made last week.

Recommendations on both visits indicate that communication between the MECs’ offices, departmental officials, schools and other stakeholders needs, I quote, ``drastic improvement’’. Indications are that primary schools have taken in-service training courses in OBE to heart, while the same cannot be said of post-primary schools. This has to be addressed urgently.

The recent decision to discontinue the OBE methodology at high school until 2006 indicates the state of unpreparedness of the department. Delayed deliveries of learner support materials experienced during the visit impact negatively on the provision of education. Let us call on all those involved to take their responsibilities seriously. Educators and parents continue to do admirable work under trying circumstances of unemployment, and having to cope with the new demands of being on top of the situation as members of school governing bodies.

It is a long learning curve that calls for forbearance from all of us. The UCDP notes with appreciation the elaborate efforts made by the Free State department of education around promoting the awareness of HIV/Aids education programmes. Surely the tide is turning for the good.

The positive contribution made by farmers in the Free State towards making schooling accessible on their farms needs to be commended. We hope other farmers elsewhere in the country will take a leaf from their book. [Time expired.] Dr M S MOGOBA: Chairperson, our first word is of appreciation for this intensive visit by the committee to Mpumalanga and the Free State. The oversight function of Parliament was well attempted, and it should make people in our provinces and in the far-flung areas and schools feel that they are not forgotten people. The overall picture that emerges is that there is some improvement in some schools. But there are still problems showing that we inherited a situation from the past regime that was most inhuman and intolerable.

The progress of a government and this Parliament will be measured in the way we bring equity to our schools and communities. We must work hard to bring freedom and immense transformation in our schools. A school in the new South Africa must be understood in the same way for all people, otherwise nonracialism has no meaning whatsoever. Some schools in our country are so shocking that one wonders how education can be given in such an environment.

Last week I visited a school in Bolobedu in Tzaneen on the border of Limpopo and Mpumalanga. The windows were broken, the inside of the classroom was horrible, and the toilets were not toilets at all. It is difficult to imagine how particularly girls and lady teachers survive a day in such a school. This community has also asked me to bring a Macedonian call to this Parliament, a loud appeal for help and assistance.

The task for the Government is to relook at the question of priorities in spending. This is a matter of great urgency. We must bury the apartheid legacy, particularly in the place where freedom should begin - in the classrooms. We must appeal to parents and the business sector to help. We also register appreciation for the efforts of former President Mandela in motivating the business community to assist in school construction.

A generation of properly educated pupils will become our allies in the struggle for a new democratic, nonracial, nonsexist South Africa in the culture and spirit of our human rights ideals. I thank you.

Miss S RAJBALLY: Thank you, Chairperson and hon Minister. The MF found that, while pleased at some reports of the delegation on the matter set as the subject, there were many reports of sad apartheid-era scenarios that were upsetting and disappointing; upsetting in that such conditions are a reality and disappointing in that they exist.

However, it’s reports of such harsh truths that push us forward to change the learning conditions that some of these schools are forced to operate in. The MF applauds the increase in the budget for the LSM, stationery and textbooks, and is pleased with the Mpumalanga MEC for his constant supervision over the process.

There are achievements in infrastructure in Mpumalanga. However, the backlog is a worry and efforts need to be made to meet it, especially noting its effect on the learning process. Though major improvement appears to have been reached in light of scholars’ transport, many learners still have to be catered for.

There are many teachers looking for jobs, with appropriate qualifications, from more developed areas and towns. The MF feels that this supply of teachers should be taken to such areas as Mpumalanga, where services are needed. The situation of farm schools is stressing, which brings us to the situation in the Free State. Transport is a major issue and needs to be addressed.

The MF does not think we should establish hostels. These children need their families as much as they need the education. Transport needs to be accommodated. From the report, efforts to assist the Free State situation appear to be under way.

The recommendations made for both areas are supported by the MF, and we hope that the same may be done in the KwaZulu-Natal area and other provinces. Thank you, Chairperson.

Mr C AUCAMP: Hon Chairperson, it was a privilege for me to be part of the group visiting schools in the Free State. For a week I had a very pleasant minibus-taxi experience with other members.

I must mention I was proud of the contribution made by farmers. It was already mentioned, ie the transport infrastructure, and people who are really taking this country forward.

We experienced some problems with everything not being in place in the departments, such as correspondence that is long overdue, etc. I think the words of both the President and the Minister of Finance, in his Budget Speech, should be remembered here. Improvement in infrastructure and facilities is very important. It can’t be overemphasised, but something must be mentioned.

We experienced this strange phenomenon. We visited a well-equipped school which was dysfunctional. We also visited a small school with far fewer facilities, but it is performing very well. Let us always remember: important as it may be, the core of education is not bricks, but people. We must remember that.

Throughout our visit, we received some concerns about Curriculum 2005. Teachers are not geared for it at the moment. We must think again about this issue.

Another thing I want to mention is that we experienced real leadership amongst some younger teachers who have aspirations, while the older headmaster is only serving his sentence. We must look at this so that not only seniority but also merit will be the cornerstone of a promotion in our education system.

Lastly, I want to thank the hon Moses Kgwele, who was the leader of our group, for a very pleasant experience and the leadership that he extended to us during this week. Thank you.

Mr B M KOMPHELA: Thank you, Chairperson. We attended a conference of the Labour Relations Council in Port Elizabeth. At that conference, the Deputy Director-General of the Eastern Cape was throwing around his weight, saying: “Kuyahanjwa e-Eastern Cape” [The Eastern Cape is progressing]. I would like to invite him to come and see that Freistata re a tsamaya [the Free State is progressing]. Akuhanjwa, re a tsamaya in the Free State. Re ya ntshetsopeleng. [We are developing.]

It is true that in 1994 the majority of our people chose the national liberation movement led by the ANC as the political force that should lead our country and we are now going through the post-apartheid process for the reconstruction and development of the people as a whole.

One of the critical challenges faced by our movement, the ANC, is the struggle to push back the frontiers of poverty experienced by our people. It took us 80 years to be free, so we do not care how much it is going to take or what it is going to cost us to get there, but definitely, we will redeem our people from the shackles of poverty.

The visit by the portfolio committee was very important and long overdue. It has given us an opportunity to be on the ground with people. We must have first-hand information and experience of what is taking place. Last year, when I was at this podium, I said that the nation was at work.

It is true that the nation is at work and our people are at work. Last year’s results are a testimony to the fact that, really, the nation is at work. We have seen what our country has achieved as far as the results are concerned. That is the testimony that the nation is at work. We are not naive to think that there are no challenges. Sixty per cent of the schools in the Free State are farm schools. One can imagine the kind of poverty and the struggle of those pupils to attain quality and a better education. Under these circumstances, the ANC-led Government is trying to make a better life. We have not finally applied our strategy to attract quality and better teachers in farm schools because every person wants to see himself in an urban place.

In one of the comments that we made we said that it would be important for us, together with the Minister, to check what incentives we can put in place to attract quality teachers to give our children what is important as far as education is concerned.

Today we can tell this country and the world that the ANC-led Government in the Free State has made sure that learners in the Free State are able to get a better education and they must go out on the strain of a long walk to a better education. Last year the Free State department told us that in the five districts which the Free State is composed of, they will definitely have hostels for those children. I am here to report as a person who was part of that committee. Out of the five districts, three districts already have these. The Xhariep district has what is called Ollen School where all the farm children in that region are housed and fed in that boarding school. Go and check the kind of commitment they have there.

In the Thabo-Mofutshanyane district, which is in Qwaqwa, the school there in Tseki is a boarding school. The Free State MEC and the Free State government have made sure that children in that densely populated Qwaqwa area are able to not walk and risk their lives in the cold and at night and at any other time. Children are housed there. Go and see those farm children. They have a commitment in ensuring that in no time the children will attain a better education.

In Mothew district, which is in the Bloemfontein area, at the old Moroka High School, the same applies. It is true that if children do not have food, if they have to walk a long distance, and if they are tired, they cannot cope with the type of education that they are given. Those boarding schools that they have created there bear testimony. Anybody who wants to check the achievements of those children two years ago, compared with today’s achievements will see that it is true that hunger makes children not perform at the maximum that they are capable of.

We also appreciate the contribution of bicycles by very generous South Africans who have given the Free State almost 400 bicycles. Those learners, those boys and girls who are using those bicycles, today are able to reach the school untired and to go home safely. They are also enjoying those bicycles. We say thank you for those little contributions. They changed the lives of the Free State children greatly.

I would like to say to this House today on the issue of textbooks, which is one of the most problematic areas in the Free State, that they were delivered in December. I can bear testimony to that because we were part of the ANC to make sure that in January, whether schools start on time or whatever else is happening there, all schools in the Free State had books and schools started on time. That is an achievement. If one starts right, one will finish right. The pass rate has increased, yes.

Regarding the nutrition programme in the Free State, people are beginning to benefit from that. In the three boarding schools that I have mentioned, plus other schools that are there, 29 000 farm children are benefiting from the nutrition programme. Minister, it is not enough, but at least we have moved a step forward in addressing the poverty facing our children. We thank you for that.

There are practical problems around the nutrition programme. The criteria that are used need to be reviewed because even in the case of those schools that have better walls, there are children who come from the Joe Slovo squatter camp and other squatter camps who have come to school without having had any food at home. When one puts a criterion that if the bricks that the school is built with are good then one can assume that even the children in those buildings come from families that are probably as well- off as the school, I think we need to revisit and check that so that we do not put that down as a criterion. I know it is not a criterion but I think we need to check it seriously because very hungry and improverished learners are in those beautiful schools.

Again I would like to thank you hon members because all farmers in the Free State, the majority of them, up to 90% of them, have signed contracts with the MEC for education and they have volunteered. Others came and said: “We want to sign contracts so that our children in school on farms are able to get a better education.” We commend them for that.

We salute cadres and patriots of this movement who have helped in the spirit of volunteerism and also in the schools, and in the delivery of textbooks. They have even volunteered to help in the feeding schemes that are taking place in the schools, and even in boarding schools so that those children can have a better life. Many have made an input to help change the lives of our people for the better. This has given an indication that, indeed, many of our people, black and white, are prepared to extend a hand to make a better life for everybody.

I would like to say that a certain Mr Hendrik De Jager has donated land for this school, free of charge. He said he wanted children to get this. We are saying to Mr De Jager: Thank you very much. Mr De Jager passed away and his wife is still there. She has a very powerful infrastructure there. The school is going down because the husband has passed away. That was a school that was given free for everybody to use with a boarding school … [Time expired.]

The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Mr Chairperson, ladies and gentlemen - I beg your pardon - members of the National Assembly, I welcome this opportunity to be part of this debate, although I understand that it is not always the case that the Minister concerned is asked to participate in such instances.

The issues, concerns and challenges raised in the report are not only of importance to the two provinces visited, but to all of our schools in South Africa, for all our provinces, and for the quality of education. Of course, I cannot help but notice the enthusiasm with which the committee went about its work, particularly in the Free State, having exceeded even its own objectives. Therefore, the response to this kind of eye-opening exercises cannot be defensive on anyone’s part, because this is not only identifying the areas where things are happening very well, but also the pathologies of what is taking place.

Democracy is a very wonderful thing. This afternoon, whilst coming to Parliament, I was pleasantly accosted by four Grade 11 girls. They said that in a school not a thousand miles away from here they had no teacher for physical science; they had not received any textbooks, and they come from a very poor background, and had to buy them. So you see, the flesh is willing, but the mind does not work in this case. Systems break down, particularly in the Western Cape. These are section 21 schools that control their entire budget, unlike the schools that the committee went to. So, I think one of the good things about democracy is that the Minister can be stopped in the middle of the street and told this, knowing that the Minister will follow it up immediately. That is the important thing, then.

So, you looked not only at the various education programmes, but you set out to investigate and completed the infrastructure inspections of each school you visited, looked at such issues as management and the supply of learning support materials. Unfortunately, you did not look at the development plans since each school in South Africa, under the South African Schools Act, has to have a development plan. I think it is very important to capture what they are doing.

The Mpumalanga section of the report goes into quite specific detail on a variety of infrastructural and other issues. I am grateful, though, that the Free State section of the report keeps, in detailed terms, to its terms of reference. Unfortunately, some of the Mpumalanga report relies too much on the outpouring of individual principals, some of whom tend to blame everyone except themselves. I regularly find this when I visit schools. Invariably, it is the pupils and the parents who are blamed, and I will come to this in a moment.

Also let me say that the report overwhelmingly confirms our own assessment of the state of schooling in South Africa, and particularly the findings of our School Register of Needs, which I commend to members of Parliament, and there should be a copy in the library. This serves as a guideline for the targeting of resources and funding as well as the just-released review of the funding, financing, resourcing and cost of education in public schools.

These two documents, together with the various reports - there have now been seven since 1999 - to the President of the country on the provinces provide a very realistic and accurate picture of the challenges facing education. So, I am very pleased the portfolio committee has been out into the field to see for itself what is happening, although I am sorry that no officials from my own national department accompanied the committee on its visits to help facilitate follow-up work that is needed, whereas on previous visits, officials had accompanied them. I am sorry they are not here to listen to the quality of the interventions and particularly a debate of this kind where members recognise - I am pleased that so many members are here - that there are certain issues in our body politic that transcend political differences, and that we are part of the instruments of change. So, we can have our politically-heightened differences, but we are part of the instruments of change, and education seems to bring out - I must say - the best in my colleagues in Cabinet and, I am pleased to say, in this House too.

I am encouraged by many of the positive aspects of provincial education highlighted in the report, although, as is usually the case, it is not the good news we concentrate on, but the difficulties and challenges presented by systems that aren’t working correctly or resources that are inadequate.

Clearly, I cannot deal with the problems identified in each individual school. That has to be done by the provincial education departments, and I presume the report has already been sent to the provincial portfolio committees, MECs and heads of departments responsible for education. I will ensure that the provinces provide me with a school-by-school report on the matters identified by the committee, as well as the general recommendations the committee makes, since we need to be mindful of the needs in all our schools, not just those signalled out for high-profile visits.

Let me deal with some general observations very quickly. In the first instance, many of the issues raised deal specifically with resources, whether they are in the form of teacher and staff components, learning materials and infrastructure. The review of the financing, cost and resourcing of education, which I released this week, shows without doubt that there have been improvements in our procurement, financial planning and management systems.

But, many challenges remain. We know, for example, our infrastructure backlog could be as high as R30 billion, but we also know that it is decreasing annually. The Minister of Finance gave all the provinces R1,3 billion for infrastructure development. This is a remarkable part of the fruits of our macroeconomic policy - for the next three years, there will be R103 billion available for infrastructure. There is no doubt we will push very hard for education there.

So, I commissioned this report because I was concerned about the conditions of the degradation of our schools, backlogs in development and maintenance, and inadequate allocation of teachers and material. I said this afternoon I hope for an opportunity, even with the one-man party, to discuss this report, because it is the best thing we have produced.

We now have a very good picture of the resourcing situation, and some very useful recommendations were made by my officials on how to handle this. We have quadrupled - a 400% increase - the amount spent on textbooks and the learning support materials in the last three-and-a-half years. We ensure, in the main, that this material is delivered to schools on time for the beginning of the school year, but as I say, there are 27 000 schools in South Africa and it is a very important report that should be looked at, but we cannot supply learning materials to every grade. No country in the world does that. In fact, we are the only country in Africa, I think, that supplies the learning materials to schools. Therefore, the retrieval of books, which is one of the things that we have to look at, is enormously important. In former ex-model C schools - when I went around - up to 90% of the books were retrieved. In townships, rurals areas, it was hardly anything. It has changed in the last two or three years. The poorest of schools are bringing back 60% or 70% of the materials that were sent out.

The next point I want to make is a very important recommendation, and I have said this publicly: The failure of district officials is one of the most devastating things here. I regret to say that many of them are old homeland officials who were appointed in apartheid times and have not caught the spirit of the age - that they are servants of the public. It is neither the committee nor I who should bring what is wrong to the attention of the MECs. We are not Father Christmases. We will make visits every two or three years. It is their job - the district officials’ job - to keep the head of the department and the MEC informed about what is wrong in every school. If they do not visit every school once a month, they are in default of their contract of employment.

We are now sayng, because I accept personal responsibility, that the MECs must ensure that the district officials perform their work. If they do not, then the MEC is responsible for nonfulfilment of the officials’ functions. There is no other way. You see, we must go away from the old idea that Ministers and portfolio committees are able to supply the goodies, because the goodies can only go to the schools we visit. What about the adjoining school? What about the school over the hill that we have not visited? That is why the district officials must be tied to their obligations. We reiterate this: It is vital for the performance - in my view - of the educational system that the middle management or lower management are the ones who must, of course, be encouraged by the leadership.

School management and governance is very important, and that is why I set up a committee on the functioning of school governing bodies, because they are central to the democratic participation of our people, and I hope, members of Parliament, however anecdotal your views may be, they are based on your own personal experiences. I hope you will write to the committee, or write care of me about your own experiences as to how we can improve the performance of school governing bodies. Particularly, it might be better to group some of the school governing bodies on a local district level so that they can be more efficiently run.

What is immediately clear is that there will never be good management in a school unless there is parental participation. There are 27 000 schools in South Africa. No official can look after 27 000 schools - we must remember that. Schools that function well, as the report says quite clearly, are the schools where the parents are actively involved. That is particularly important because before 1994, volunteerism or Letsema, was a subversive notion. If you were a volunteer, you would then say ``My God, this is a system that we must change’’. That is why the notion of voluntary activity has been dimmed among many of our people, and I regret to say that this is across all racial groups, by the way, because I have found that out when it comes to school governing bodies. That is why it is enormously important that the leadership should come from us. A school is secure where parents are involved. Where the parents aren’t involved, you find, as the Free State report says, that in a highly well-equipped school, the teachers aren’t performing their functions. It is a shame; an appalling thing. In the same way, where school governing bodies are involved, there will be pressure on the provinces to provide the minimum of resources.

I don’t have the time to go into the issue of farm schools, because I think we should have a debate on farm schools in this House. It is an inheritance that creates enormous problems. I don’t think boarding schools, hon Moorcroft, are necessarily the answer. They are very expensive. We find already from the report that there are thousands of Free State children who do not live at home. They live in shacks; they live in backyards. There is a breakdown of family life. We must help in that. Obviously, in some areas, boarding schools are the right things to do. There is no doubt about that. It is a matter of general application, and is phenomenally expensive. We have to realise that. That is why the grouping of schools may be the right way, providing transport is provided.

Many countries in the world have closed down one-teacher schools. It is nearly effectively impossible to run a school of five or six grades with one teacher. I went to school where there were two teachers for up to standard six, so I know what happens when you have two teachers up to standard six, as I know from my own evidence. That is why it may be better to group schools together. In a word, therefore, Free State leads the way in the contracts between farm schools and the MECs. I like the way the hon Aucamp, obviously in the Afrikaans language, said: The Minister will invite some of the farmers'', and not that We respectfully ask the Minister to invite them’’! [Laughter.] I would like to say that I must follow what the Free State report says. I can’t disappoint the hon Aucamp. I will invite some of those farmers to the Budget Vote here, and give special attention to them. [Applause.]

The curriculum issues are very important. I thank the Minister for saying that the difficulties arise - that is why I am sorry my officials aren’t here - when you have classrooms, and the teachers have to deal with two or three classes without progress in education. This is something we have to give special training in for teachers who deal with multiple classes.

May I say also that the report refers to the matriculation results for

1. I am going to look through it, school by school, to see what happened in the two reports. There are significant changes and improvements in Mpumalanga from 46,9% in 2001 to 55,8%. In the Free State, there was a pass rate of 70,7% and the improvement of 11 percentage points in one year - the best improvement amongst all the provinces. There is in fact a generalised improvement in the academic performances, but of course, notwithstanding the great number of physical difficulties they have.

I am very pleased this debate was held. I think it is important to focus on some of these areas school by school. As public representatives, we must ensure that we encourage good practice, and that we play our role in ensuring that schools and teachers are given the support they need to provide the quality of education we wish for all our children, and to overcome the legacy of the past.

Therefore, I greet the House for receiving this report, and for encouraging this debate. As far as the hon Dudley is concerned, I will talk to her later, but I want to tell her that there is nothing licentitious about sex education.

I don’t want to strike a discordant note. I must say thank you very much for the way in which you worked together to provide remedies for our educational system. Thank you, hon members. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move that the report be adopted.

Agreed to.

The House adjourned at 18:49. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

1. Classification of Bills by Joint Tagging Mechanism:

 (1)    The Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) on 5 March 2003  in  terms  of
     Joint Rule 160(3), classified the following Bill as  a  section  75
     Bill:


     (i)     Geoscience Amendment Bill [B 7 - 2003]  (National  Assembly
          - sec 75).

Draft Bills submitted in terms of Joint Rule 159:


 (1)    Financial and Fiscal Commission Amendment Bill, 2003,  submitted
     by the Minister of Finance on 26 February  2003.  Referred  to  the
     Portfolio  Committee  on  Finance  and  the  Select  Committee   on
     Finance.

National Assembly:

1. Submission of Private Members’ Legislative Proposals:

 (1)     The  following  private  member's  legislative   proposal   was
     submitted to the Speaker on 28 February 2003,  in  accordance  with
     Rule 234:


     (i)     Child Care Amendment  Bill  (re  trafficking  in  children]
          (Mrs S M Camerer).


     In accordance with Rule  235  the  legislative  proposal  has  been
     referred to the Standing Committee on Private Members'  Legislative
     Proposals and Special Petitions by the Speaker.

TABLINGS:

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

Papers:

1. The Minister of Finance:

 Report and Financial Statements of Vote No 13 - Statistics South Africa
 for 2001-2002, including the  Report  of  the  Auditor-General  on  the
 Financial Statements for 2001-2002 [RP 148-2002].