When the Gauteng Department of Education introduced the online application, it did not invite citizens for inputs or comments.
This attitude suggests that the provincial government thinks it knows what’s best for its citizens.
The Gauteng online application has been running for three years now. And it has been having teething problems ever since. However, this year the flaws of the system were exposed like never before.
As I write, there are many learners who are yet to be placed. Yet some, if not most, have applied early or on time to avoid this kind of problem. Parents are now panicking, even though the department has promised that all learners will be placed.
A few Sundays ago one parent told me that her child was placed in a school she doesn’t know and never heard of. As if that is not enough, the school fee is R4 500 a month – money she doesn’t have. She’s so frustrated.
She is not the only parent who is frustrated. There are many others who find themselves in the same predicament. And they don’t know what to do. When they go to District offices, District tells them there is nothing they can do to help them. Can you imagine?
Interestingly, the Gauteng MEC for Education, Panyaza Lesufi insists that the online application is the best thing ever to happen in provincial education. (Yet the opposite is true.) Lesufi further says the online application is here to stay.
The truth is that the system is not working. It is causing chaos and confusion. So, it is up to Gauteng parents to tell the Education MEC to scrap the online application. The ball is in their court.
