As we approach the annual 16 Days of Activism campaign, the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape welcomes the fact that the Department of Basic Education paid for the vetting of student teachers against the National Register for Sex Offenders. We hope that this step will prompt the provincial government to stop delaying and to start taking the vetting of officials entrusted with the safety of our children seriously.
Information presented to the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature in October confirms that forms for clearance were only submitted for 21% of the officials who require vetting, with forms received for just over 10%. The two most populous districts, Frances Baard and John Taolo Gaetsewe, only submitted forms for 12% of those who require vetting.
Having only one in ten officials vetted is a dangerously poor performance that places the wellbeing of school communities at risk. The national department already issued an earlier directive stating that the heads of provincial education departments are responsible for vetting all officials and educators against the National Register for Sex Offenders and the National Child Protection Register. Considering the ongoing child rape crisis in the country, it beggars belief that the Northern Cape seems content to disregard this directive.
I will ask the premier about his intentions to fill the vacancy for the Head of the Northern Cape Department of Education, which has been without permanent leadership since the unceremonious removal of Moira Marais-Martin in September 2023.
At the end of the day, there can be no excuse for failing to prioritise the safety of our children.