Political parties debate WCED decision to cut more than 2 400 teaching posts in the province

Various political parties criticised the decision of the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) to cut more than 2 400 teaching posts in the province.

A special debate was held at the Western Cape Provincial Parliament on Thursday. The debate of ‘public importance’ was brought on by GOOD party’s secretary-general, Brett Herron

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The WCED is preparing to lay off around 2 407 teachers. Education authorities says a budget shortfall is to blame. The department says the budget cuts will not only impact the educators but programmes and infrastructure projects as well.

The ANC in the Western Cape legislature says the cut will have a devastating impact on education especially for under resourced schools and overcrowded classrooms.

‘’This crisis did not rise overnight. The Western Cape’s underfunding of education has been consistent for years… The impact will be especially devastating for under-resourced schools where students need more attention, not less. Class sizes will balloon, individual support will diminish, and the strain on educators will be unbearable,’’ said Khalid Sayed, ANC leader in the Western Cape legislature.

‘’Let me be clear: while we understand the need to try and balance the books, this cannot come at the expense of our children, our economy and South Africa’s future,’’ he added.

The GOOD Party believes that minor adjustments should be made to accommodate educators.

‘’ It is said that the choices governments make in compiling budgets reflect their values and aspirations. It is the Western Cape Government’s choice to cull thousands of teachers posts because it would rather spend money dabbling in crime prevention,’’ said Brett Herron, GOOD: Secretary General & Member of the Western Cape Parliament.

‘’It can’t admit that teachers’ jobs must pay for the theatre of its provincial security force, so it falsely blames unanticipated public sector wage increases for its shortage of money.

‘’The disconnect between provincial budgets catering for wage increases, only for the Department to announce it is being forced to shed more than 2400 teacher jobs because it doesn’t have funds to cover wage increases, requires explanation.

‘’Did the government deliberately table inaccurate budgets before the elections to mislead voters ahead of the election, or do our political leaders not understand their own budgets? Whichever it is, what is undeniable is that this government has made unbelievably uneducated choices with its funding allocations. With better choices no teachers posts need be lost,’’ concluded Herron.

The Patrotic Alliance says the real impact on education will be seen in the years to come.

‘’The Patriotic Alliance believe that we must act swiftly to address the crisis and propose that a multi-party committee be appointed to engage with national government; resources be reallocated to disadvantaged communities; implement strategies for dropouts; mitigate the teacher shortages. Act now to prevent education quality from decreasing,’’ said Bazil Petrus, Patriotic Alliance MPP.

Western Cape Education MEC, David Maynier said:

‘’The impact of losing posts will be significant. We must understand that the national government did not fully fund the 2023 multi-year public wage agreement, receiving 64% of funds. Despite implementing drastic budget cuts, we still face a budget shortfall over the next 3 years. We had to take drastic action to cover the massive budget shortfall. Daily operations will be hugely affected. The national treasury knew exactly what their decision would mean in our country.’’

A number of teachers and learners from various schools across the Western Cape protested outside their respective learning institutions on Friday, as they are against the announcement from the Western Cape Education Department that more than 2 400 teaching posts will be cut by the end of this year.

Many held placards with the words ‘’More teachers, less police’’; ‘’Value teachers, Value education’’.

 

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Done By: Mitchum George