Limpopo premier agrees that teaching should be declared an essential service. Does the national minister agree?

Today, during a meeting with Limpopo premier Cassel Mathale, the premier of the province agreed with me that teaching should be declared an essential service, so that teachers cannot go on strike. It is not often that an ANC premier is prepared to agree with a DA proposal and this only emphasises the importance of this cause.

The premier's support adds further fuel to a growing body of opinion that this is a necessary step to curb the disruptive activities of certain trade unions representing teachers. This afternoon in the national parliament will be asking the minister herself whether she agrees.

Yesterday the DA revealed that schools in two provinces had been ordered to close their doors at 10am for various Sadtu events. Last night during a radio broadcast on this issue, the station was inundated with callers complaining about disruptions to schools by Sadtu - including a member of Sadtu. One caller said he had been to three different regions in Limpopo (Tzaneen, Blouberg and Seshego), and at all these regions schools had been closed at 10am or before.

During this interview a SADTU member called in to say the union would not apologise for closing schools.

While declaring teaching to be an essential service would not stop the kinds of disruptions that we are seeing now, it would put a stop to a great deal of the class time lost because of SADTU's activities, and show that the government is in fact serious about dealing with the problem of arrogant and self-seeking unions who have little interest in improving the quality of education in South Africa. Over the past five years Sadtu has been responsible for 42% of all days lost in South Africa to strike action.

As we continue to sit at the bottom of international comparative tables on children's reading and writing abilities, and as poor children particularly continue to receive such a poor quality of education that they might as well stay at home, we should no longer be tolerating this.

The DA has submitted an application to the Essential Services Committee for teaching to be declared an essential service, and we await their response.

Statement issued by Desiree van der Walt, MP, Democratic Alliance leader in Limpopo, March 10 2010

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