Where is Mr Ackermann? [Interjections.] Oh!
Chairperson, Minister of Education, Comrade Kader Asmal, special delegates present here today, colleagues, this Adult Basic Education and Training Bill is significant for most of us who grew up during the period when we fought against gutter education or were deprived of the opportunity of going to school because of socioeconomic circumstances.
Some of us chose the option of boycotting the unequal education system, geared to churning out obedient blacks who would not question the draconian laws operating at that time. Many others were unable to finish school because their parents could not afford to send them to school, or there were no schools within walking distance.
For all of these people and many others, this new Bill affords them a second chance to put the knowledge that they acquired while attending the university of wisdom or the university of life into a more structured environment governed by trained professionals, which would translate, at the end of the training period, into a certificate.
More significantly, this Bill, while giving effect to the provisions of section 29(1)(a) of our Constitution, paves the way for redressing the educational inequities of the past. It will give back dignity to the forgotten people, our mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, who sacrificed their education to ensure that others would get ahead and prosper. I am sure that today this room is filled with delegates whose parents and grandparents, brothers and sisters are semiliterate, with few or no marketable skills.
It is, of course, our responsibility - that of all of us - to ensure that the provisions of this Bill are implemented in all nine provinces. Indeed, we must be vigilant in ensuring that the obligation that this Bill places on the heads of provincial departments of Education, to provide facilities for use as public centres, is met without any exception.
This Bill also calls for all of us to be vigilant in making sure that our governing bodies in schools allow reasonable use of these facilities as public centres. We need to guard against selfish officials of governing bodies who jealously guard their turf.
The public centres brought into being by this Bill will provide an alternative for those who cannot afford the fees of private institutions offering all kinds of training programmes. The Bill places a financial obligation on the national Government, but more especially on provincial governments, to take up the challenge of educating our adult population, with the emphasis on quality and adherence to agreed norms and standards.
This Bill should be regarded as a very important milestone and will change the face of adult education in our country. The North West, without any reservations, supports the Bill.
We also welcome the Education Laws Amendment Bill, since it will further ensure that we continue to strive for equity, redress and functionality in our schools, in a democratic environment.
The amendment dealing with further provision for public schools on private property is of particular relevance to our province, which encounters serious problems relating to access to these schools.
This Bill is also welcomed for the particular focus it places on capacity, as well as disciplinary procedures. We need more control in our schools to ensure a safe haven of learning for our children who are continually brutalised by elements of society that oppose progress towards quality education for the nation. The North West supports this Bill. [Applause.]