Cape Town – Concerned parents, teachers and other groups have vowed to continue their fight for schools to be closed, despite being warned of litigation.
This comes as some teachers claim they faced suspension for calling for schools to close.
A number of teachers from Florida High faced disciplinary action for leaving school after a community protest outside the premises last week.
WCED spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said: “Protestors forcefully closed Florida HS during a protest. A number of teachers left the premises early on the same day without permission from the principal after the protesters had left. We will not provide further comment on the disciplinary matter, as this is an internal staff matter.”
Ravensmead community leader Jefffrey Oliphant said members of the community went to the school to protest as they were concerned about sanitising.
“When we got there, the teachers were already protesting and we asked that learners and teachers leave the school.”
Florida High School lost teacher Faizel Adam to Covid-19 last month and Oliphant said they wanted to avoid losing any more teachers or learners.
The Department of Basic Educationm, meanwhile, said the Council of Education Ministers had resolved to take legal action against anyone who continued to disrupt schooling.
“We would like to emphasise the fact that the reopening and closure of schools is a legislative responsibility accorded to national and provincial authorities only.
“Groups and individuals who are not empowered by law do not have the authority to close schools.
“The government is extremely concerned about teachers, principals and non-teaching staff who use any platform to attack the government for going back to work, ostensibly creating an impression that they should be treated differently from other public servants.”
National organiser for the Congress of the SA Students Luxolo Gqamana said they would continue to close schools, despite the warning.
“This is not the apartheid government where people can be threatened to be arrested, and for trying to save the lives of scholars.
“We will strongly oppose any court matter.”
All eyes will be on Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga as she faces teacher unions today to discuss the future of schooling during the pandemic.
President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier weighed in on the matter and indicated that the National Coronavirus Command Council was likely to consider the World Health Organisation’s view that schools should not be reopened when communities continued to be affected by the virus.