President Cyril Ramaphosa has opened a three-month consultation period over two clauses in the Basic Education Laws Amendment bill that deal with admissions and language policies. (Dwayne Senior/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Democratic Alliance has rejected President Cyril Ramaphosa’s proposal of a three-month consultation period over sections in the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Bill and said the DA will proceed with court action on the adoption of the Bill.
“The DA has instructed its lawyers to continue to prepare for court action on both the process leading to the adoption of the Bela Bill, as well as its substance, on constitutional grounds,” DA leader John Steenhuisen said in response to the president’s announcement.
Ramaphosa signed the Bela Bill into law on Friday but said he will delay the implementation of two clauses — clauses 4 and 5 — for three months for negotiations with parties in the government of national unity (GNU) who have rejected its contents.
Ramaphosa’s move is an attempt to create some breathing space for both himself and the DA over the Bill, the signing of which was boycotted by Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube.
On Thursday, Ramaphosa and Steenhuisen publicly allayed fears that tensions of the Bill could collapse the GNU ahead of the signing of the Bill, and the president’s opening of a window for negotiation in his speech at the signing indicates his intention to allow the parties a chance to find each other over the next three months.
But Steenhuisen said in a statement responding to the president’s announcement that the DA would now go the legal route and have the Bill declared unconstitutional.
In his address at the signing, Ramaphosa said he had decided to use his prerogative as president to open a “window” for negotiations around the two clauses after being approached by a number of parties shortly before the signing.
Although he had not agreed to stop the signing, as they had requested, he had decided on the compromise to try to seek resolution to the impasse over the Bill.
“This will give the parties time to deliberate on these issues and make proposals on how the different views may be accommodated,” Ramaphosa said.
“Should the parties not be able to agree on an approach, then we will proceed with the implementation of these parts of the Bill,” he said.
But Steenhuisen has rejected this, referring to it as a “threat”, and said the approach is “contrary to the spirit of the statement of intent that formed the foundation of the GNU, which requires the participating parties to reach “sufficient consensus on divisive issues”.
He further accused the ANC of “violating the constitutional rights of parents and governing bodies in functional schools”.
The Bela Bill suggests strengthening oversight of school governing bodies.
Hours before the ceremony, Gwarube issued a statement saying she had written to Ramaphosa to notify him that she could not attend the ceremony until her concerns regarding the Bill were rectified.
Gwarube said she was always and remains opposed to the Bill in its current form and has requested that Ramaphosa to refer it back to parliament for reconsideration regarding section 79 of the Constitution.
This is despite her being the minister who is expected to ensure the Bill is implemented in schools.
But she has also previously said she will adhere to her mandate as a minister and expeditiously implement “aspects” of the Bill should it be signed into law.
“The Bill is the brainchild of the department that I lead and so if the president signs the Bill then we have to get on with the business of governing and implementing it,” Gwarube previously told the Mail & Guardian .
The Bill was tabled by former education minister Angie Motshekga and seeks to amend the South African Schools Act of 1996 and the Employment of Educators Act of 1998.
Clause 4 of the Bela Bill gives greater control over admissions policy to the department of education, rather than the school and also compels the school to admit and educate children who might not have the necessary documentation.
Clause 5 states that the school’s governing body must submit the language policy of a public school and any amendment thereof to the provincial head of department for approval.
Advocacy group Section 27 has hailed the clauses as “progressive changes to the Schools Act” and added that no learner should be denied the right to an education based on their citizenship status.
Steenhuisen said that although the president had delayed the implementation date, he had also said the Bill would be implemented after three months if they failed to agree on the two clauses.
“This means that if there is no agreement, the ANC will proceed with implementing the clauses that empower provincial departments to override school governing bodies on the issue of the language policy of schools,” Steenhuisen said. “The DA rejects this threat by the president.”
Steenhuisen said they regarded this approach as contrary to the spirit of the statement of intent signed among the GNU partners, which required the parties to reach sufficient consensus on divisive issues.
The Bill also makes grade R compulsory.
In addition it proposes measures to prevent the unnecessary disruption of schooling by protests or other causes and to criminalise such actions. And it will introduce penalties for parents who keep their children out of school for extended periods.
And the Bill addresses aspects of homeschooling, requiring parents to register their children with the department and specify the curriculum being used. It mandates independent assessments to monitor the children’s progress.
It also offers an expansive definition of corporal punishment to include “any acts which seek to belittle, humiliate, threaten, induce fear or ridicule the dignity and person of a learner”.