Those found with convictions include four primary school teachers, four general assistants, and one food handler.
Politicians in the Gauteng Legislature were left stunned after they discovered that nine Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) employees were able to get jobs in the department with criminal records related to sexual offences.
Democratic Alliance (DA) Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL), Micheal Waters, said this was revealed in a presentation to the portfolio committee on education on 7 November.
He said the presentation revealed that out of the 86 367 employees in Gauteng public schools, 8 782, or 10.2%, have been vetted against the National Register for Sexual Offences (NRSO).
Those found with convictions include four primary school teachers, four general assistants, and one food handler.
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A concern for teachers and learners
Waters, who is also a DA spokesperson on education, told The Citizen on Tuesday that the revelations were “alarming” to parents and learners.
“The discovery that nine school employees have prior convictions for sexual offences is worrying and confirms that our schools are far from safe,” he said.
“This situation also suggests that there might be more sexual offenders in our schools interacting with our learners due to the GDE’s failure to prioritise vetting,” he added.
The presentation, which The Citizen has seen, further revealed that of the 86 367 (GDE) employees, only 33 251 have complied with the directive to submit their details (including fingerprints) for vetting.
“Out of these, only 13 386 have been submitted to the South African Police Service (Saps) for a SAPS69i report.
“This report is a system-generated document from Saps indicating whether the applicant has convictions or pending cases,” he said.
Vetting fees and challenges
However, he said the member of the executive council for education should appear in front of the portfolio committee to explain what steps the department is taking to protect children from sexual predators.
“As the next step, the DA will push the GDE to engage the Department of Justice to vet employees against the NRSO and issue certificates,” he said.
On the other hand, the DA in Gauteng will also be writing to the National Minister of Education Siviwe Gwarube requesting that she engage her counterparts in Police and Justice to see if the cost of R85 for vetting can be removed to make the process more efficient.
“While this process is cumbersome and expensive, it is imperative that all employees are vetted to ensure that children are protected at school,” Waters said.
No jobs for sexual offenders
The National Professional Teachers Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa) said it encouraged all teachers to get vetted to ensure the integrity of the teaching profession.
“I know that many teachers say, ‘Why do I have to do it?’, but it must be done for the sake of the profession and to preserve its dignity,” said Neptosa Executive Director Basil Manuel.
Manuel told The Citizen that other challenges that involve the vetting process included delays in the issuing of a clearance certificate and the funding of the vetting process by the education département.
“Some principals want this done as soon as possible, but there are challenges.”
He said the vetting should be done before the teacher or worker is employed, as well as during the years of employment.
“If you have been found guilty of a sexual offence, you cannot teach,” he said.
Manuel said there are teachers with other offences that are not sexual.
He said those teachers can teach, but their offences should be expunged.
The Citizen contacted Steve Mabona, a spokesperson for the GDE, for comment.
However, Mabona said the department would be able to respond once there is more information on the matter.
*This article will be updated once a full comment is received from the GDE.
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