Pretoria - President Jacob Zuma has requested Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga to give a report back on action taken regarding the delivery of textbooks in Limpopo as well as the catch up plan for affected Grade 10 learners.
This is according to the report by the Presidential Task Team set up to investigate the non-delivery and/or delays in the delivery of textbooks and stationery to Limpopo schools in the 2012 school year.
The task team, appointed by Zuma, provided a report on Friday.
It has made wide-ranging recommendations aimed at both solving the problem at hand and preventing future occurrence.
The President has accepted the report, saying he viewed the failure to provide textbooks to Grades 1, 2, 3 and 10 in Limpopo "in a very serious light and wants to ensure that there is no recurrence of the problem".
In further processing it, Zuma has asked Motshekga to supply a report on what has been done thus far, with regard to:
- the effective procurement, delivery and supply of Learner Teacher Support Material (LTSM) to the affected schools
- the proper implementation and monitoring of the catch up plan in respect of Grade 10 learners in the affected schools.
She is expected to supply the information within 21 days from 21 September.
The President has further asked the minister to request the Public Service Commission to investigate the conduct of the Director General of the Department of Basic Education, with regard to his alleged indecisive response to correspondence received from the publishers in December 2011 regarding the procurement of LTSM for the 2012 academic year.
He should also be investigated for his failure to provide the necessary support for the Section 100 (1)(b) intervention and specifically his interaction with the Administrators appointed in terms of such intervention.
The Ministers in the Presidency, Collins Chabane and Trevor Manuel, have been assigned to assist Motshekga in fulfilling the tasks and ensuring the implementation of the recommendations of the Presidential Task Team.
The Presidential Task Team comprised the Deputy Minister of Finance as Chairperson, Basic Education, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Performance, Monitoring and Evaluation and Public Service and Administration. - SAnews.gov.za
