Time to review academic freedom - NEHAWU

NEHAWU SPECIAL CEC STATEMENT

The National Education Health and Allied Workers' Union (NEHAWU) held a special Central Executive Committee meeting on the 31 July 2009 at Birchwood Hotel following a successful four day National Political School held on the 27-30 July 2009.

Following extensive deliberations on the macroeconomic and the political situation, as well as policy discussions on tertiary education, health care system and the developmental state, the special CEC came to the following conclusions:

1. That the state of our health care system is in crisis, both in the private and public sector. Therefore, there is an urgent need for government to move with speed in dealing with the immediate challenges especially in hospitals, whilst it also introduces medium to long term reforms. NEHAWU:

(a) Supports the commissioned process evaluating the competence of public hospital managers by the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi. In this regard, we demand that the report must be made public and the minister must act decisively on appointments that are irregular, especially where there are unsuitably appointed hospital managers with track records of mismanagement and incompetence.

(b) Supports the introduction of the National Health Insurance scheme, the strengthening and revitalization of the primary health care and district health system as part of the overall transformation of healthcare system.

2. That despite the skills development challenges facing the country, the tertiary education system remains inaccessible to majority of our people and untransformed. Therefore, the CEC calls for:

(a) The review of the Higher Education Act of 1997, especially regarding issues of institutional autonomy and academic freedom behind which the established vested interests are hiding in blocking thorough-going transformation.

(b) The scrapping of sections of the Further Education and Training Colleges Act of 2006. This legislation has led to the removal of FET sector workers out of the public service to the employ of the institutions. Government must also review the implementation of the new curriculum in the FET sector.

(c) We support the government's call for engagement and implementation of recommendations arising from the Report on Transformation, Social Cohesion and the Elimination of Discrimination in the Higher Education Sector.

3. In the midst of the deepening socioeconomic crisis and as part of building the developmental state, the CEC supports the Cabinet's decision to review the privileges related to the purchase of vehicles as provided for in the ministerial handbook. The CEC:

(a) Further calls on government to launch a comprehensive review of all the lavish and unnecessary privileges enjoyed by public officials in the national, provincial and local government, as well as in public entities and state enterprises.

(b) Commits NEHAWU to work with government in fighting corruption and nepotism in the public service, and wishes to make it clear that if any of our members are found to be in violation of the law within the public service, the authorities must take decisive and appropriate disciplinary action.

(c) Calls for the review of inflation targeting and exchange controls in line with the resolutions of the Alliance Summit held in May 2008.

(d) The implementation of the resolution of the ANC's Polokwane Conference calling for the creation of a state-owned pharmaceutical company.

(e) We call for the immediate implementation of all the outstanding OSD's and the full implementation of Resolution 1 of 2007.

(f) We call for the speedy conclusion of the 2009 wage negotiations so as to enable the employer and employees to focus all their energies on delivering quality service to our people without distractions.

Finally, NEHAWU congratulates SAMWU and all the municipal workers on their successful strike that has delivered 13% increase for its members, especially the improvement in the minimum wage securing a 20% increase for the lowest paid municipal workers in the next two years.

Statement issued by NEHAWU August 3 2009

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what a bunch of clowns what excatly needs to be transformed in our higher education system. Fact is, we need doctors, accountants and engineers - scientific disciplines. now, how do we transform these? we need to embrace them, and churn out competent people to grow our country, . .more black or white. imposing racial quotas will just continue the slide into oblivion. . .less by Realist on August 04 2009, 14:53 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Wukkas and higher education admissions policy It's really bizarre when cleaners and groundsmen at universities are so delusional they seriously think they are qualified to pronounce on university admissions policy and academic freedom. Mind you, with the clown appointed as Minister of . .more Education, some of them may soon be designing the revolutionary curricula said Minister has said the country is much in need of. Will Boesak's struggle accounting be replaced by Blade's (money in a plastic bag) revolutionary accounting in the ANC's view of what accounts need to be taught? And NEHAWU's thought that the "health care system is in crisis, both in the private and public sector", is halfway correct. It is common cause that ANC mismanagement, corruption and neglect has severely damaged the public health sector; but in spite of Tshabalala-Msimang's attempts to cripple pharmacies and the pharmaceutical industry, private health care is in reasonably good nick, apart from high costs. It is the private health care system the ANC now wants to destroy by foisting the dysfunctional public health care system on it asap. Gone is Dr Motsoaledi's promise that the public system would first be fixed before the NHI is introduced. It's full steam ahead it seems to maniacal destruction of the lot. And NEHAWU is cheered by it, B***** health, wukkas are bound to score off those capitalists! . .less by flebus on August 04 2009, 20:31 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

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