Speaker, the ACDP welcomes Cabinet's decision to invoke section 100 of the Constitution in order to intervene in the management and operation of the Eastern Cape department of education.
The department came under fire after revelations were made of gross mismanagement. Overspending of some R625 million threw Eastern Cape schools into a crisis earlier this year. In a bid to cover up for the department's overspending, it is reported that the contracts of nearly 4 500 temporary teachers were terminated, even though their services were needed. Some 1,6 million learners were denied proper school nutrition after the programme collapsed, and more than 100 000 learners, many of whom live in remote areas, were prevented from accessing state-subsidised transport.
Furthermore, support materials for teachers and learners were not adequately delivered, leaving learners without textbooks. The successful sustainable resolution of these issues will require careful and systematic restructuring of the management of the Eastern Cape department of education. That is why the ACDP welcomes the Minister's call for sustained intervention through the use of an intergovernmental co-operational agreement and the setting up of joint task teams. I thank you.