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Strikes and schools

Strike affects 2.5 million KZN learners

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:34

More than 2.5 million schoolchildren in KwaZulu-Natal have been adversely affected by the public service strike, says Premier Zweli Mkhize.

Addressing the provincial legislature, Mkhize described the situation in the province’s schools as depressing.

He said it was a mammoth task obtaining information from schools, which was possibly because of a directive from the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) to principals and teachers, asking them not to cooperate with the department.

From the information available to the KZN Department of Education, it had emerged that most schools have been closed and those that remained opened were functioning at a minimum level, Mkhize said.

On 20 August, all schools in nine of the provinces’ 12 districts were closed. Teaching and learning at the small percentage of schools that were opened in the remaining three districts were disrupted and the schools were only operational for part of the day.

Mkhize said it was believed that groups of protestors drove from school to school in convoys of between 30 and 40 cars.

“When they get to the schools they toyi-toyi in front of the school gates. If the school authorities fail to open the gates, the strikers storm the school, and instruct the principal to shut the school down,” he added.

In many instances the striking public servants shouted obscenities at non-striking teachers, learners, and parents collecting their children.

“Some schools were also damaged by those who were participating in the strike and even those pupils who were studying independently outside the school premises were disrupted,” Mkhize said.

The Education Department’s District Offices had also been hard hit by the strike.

Mkhize said the strike had brought operations at the offices to a virtual standstill.

According to reports from District Offices, they had either become inaccessible to non-striking employees or forced to close because of threats and intimidation by striking public servants.

The Premier singled out district officers in Umlazi, Empangeni, Vryheid, Amajuba, Ilembe, Ugu, Othukela, Umzinyathi, Sisonke and Umgungundlovu as the most affected.

Human Resources and Finance Service Centres have also been left almost completely in-operational.

“Ethekwini and Ladysmith have been brought to a complete standstill. Pietermaritzburg has also suffered severe disruptions. Ulundi was operating at almost full capacity, but was disrupted,” he said.

Striking employees had arrived at the offices as early as 6.30am to prevent non-striking employees from gaining entry into them, Mkhize added. BuaNews