Africa-Press – South-Africa. The DA has welcomed a labour court ruling in favour of the Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysersunie against the Gauteng education department (GDE), saying it exposes a “witch hunt” by MEC Matome Chiloane.
The court found the department violated grievance procedures in its handling of Pretoria High School for Girls (PHSG) principal Philippa Erasmus.
“This victory further affirms the DA in Gauteng’s position regarding the perpetual disregard for procedures by the GDE under the leadership of Chiloane,” said DA Gauteng shadow MEC for education Sergio Isa Dos Santos.
He said the case highlighted unfair and disproportionate disciplinary action taken against Erasmus.
“Since the beginning of the PHSG saga, the DA has consistently stated this is nothing more than a witch hunt and has flagged the selective and inconsistent application of disciplinary action by the GDE in this case,” said Dos Santos.
“While this case was pursued with astonishing speed and vigour, processes were not properly followed. This is in stark contrast to alleged serious misconduct incidents at other schools, which tend to be pursued with abysmal speed.”
The party said the labour court judgment sends a clear warning that the GDE cannot “disregard due process and the rights of employees”.
“The DA demands that MEC Chiloane immediately reverse his department’s decision to suspend Erasmus for three months without pay. We further insist that the report be made public, redacting the names of witnesses,” added Dos Santos.
He called on Chiloane to end what he described as a culture of selective discipline, saying every school, educator and pupil “must be treated with fairness and dignity”.
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