Textbooks must be returned by all learners

PREMIER Stan Mathabatha has warned department of education’s district and circuit managers and principals that there will be consequences for failure to get back textbooks in learners’ possession, at the end of the school year.

Mathabatha and educa-tion MEC Dikeledi Magadzi recently visited the ware-house where textbooks and stationery for the 2014 academic year were delivered.

According to the department, R475 million would be spent on distribution and storage.

Mathabatha urged principals and circuit managers to ensure learners returned the textbooks they received at the beginning of the year as failure to do so would be regarded as defiance on their part.

“The non-returning of learning material halts development and forces government to repeatedly spend millions of rands on similar services.

“Our textbooks have been quality assured to at least last for five years. It is therefore imperative to ensure all textbooks are kept in a good condition and returned to schools,” Mathabatha said.

“By getting the textbooks back, we can ensure we alleviate the burden on the budget and we minimise the pressure that government may face on an annual basis.”