BELA BILL ROCKS GNU BOAT!

Thu 12 September 2024:

John Steenhuisen and his colleagues from the Democratic Alliance (DA) returned from China to find an ANC ready to push ahead with the BELA Bill. This marks the first major test for the coalition government, just three months in.

Steenhuisen said should President Cyril Ramaphosa proceed with his intention to sign the BELA Bill into law on Friday, it would violate “both the letter and spirit” of the agreement underlying the coalition arrangement.

“During the negotiations, the DA made it clear that the BELA Bill was unacceptable to us in its current form, because it has constitutional implications for the right to mother-tongue education, amongst other issues,” said the DA’s federal leader in a statement on Wednesday.

DA THREATENS TO EXIT FROM GNU IF BELA BILL IS SIGNED

The DA is in charge of the education portfolio, with Siviwe Gwarube serving as the minister of education. However, Steenhuisen said Ramaphosa was acting “unilaterally” despite being head of a coalition.

He intends to meet Ramaphosa before the president has a chance to put pen to paper, urging that it be sent back to lawmakers in Parliament.

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“I have moved urgently to meet the President before Friday to re-iterate our objections in the strongest terms. I will also submit to him the simple amendments the DA requires, and urge him to use his powers to send the Bill back to Parliament.”

If the President continues to ride rough-shod over these objections, he is endangering the future of the Government of National Unity, and destroying the good faith on which it was based,” he said.

Meanwhile, ActionSA, which sits on the opposition benches, is threatening legal action. It says the Bill in its current form is unacceptable.

“… ActionSA believes a full costing of mandatory Grade R should be completed before the Bill is assented to by President Ramaphosa. The conducive learning environment that home-schooling provides should be recognised, and SGBs should retain control to decide the language policy of their respective schools. SGBs should also be empowered to determine and allow for religious practices at public schools while respective (sic) the rights and beliefs of all South Africans.”

written by Zahid Jadwat

This article originally published in Salaamedia Click here