DA says will continue to prepare for legal action against BELA Act

Ramaphosa signed the BELA Bill into law at the Union Buildings on Friday. 

However, the president announced that he would delay the implementation of some clauses in the BELA Bill by three months. 

The clauses relate to school admission and language policies.

The rest of the act will come into effect immediately.

DA leader John Steenhuisen said the party would continue to oppose the BELA Act through all available legal avenues. 

"We note President Ramaphosa’s statement at the signing ceremony of the BELA Bill today that the implementation date of its most controversial clauses will be postponed for three months for further discussions on the current impasse relating to Sections 4 and 5 of the bill.

"However, the DA also note the president’s comment that “should the parties not be able to agree on an approach, then we will proceed with the implementation of these parts of the Bill”.

"This means that if there is no agreement, the ANC will proceed with implementing the clauses that empower provincial departments to over-ride school governing bodies on the issue of the language policy of schools.”

Steenhuisen said the ANC must rather pay attention to the majority of poor performing English-medium schools. 

"The ANC government must stop violating the constitutional rights of parents and governing bodies in functional schools. If the president is serious about seeking a solution that will protect the constitutional right to mother tongue education, we welcome his announcement of a three-month delay in the implementation of Clauses 4 and 5 of the bill. 

"If this is just a delaying tactic to defuse opposition before implementing the clauses at a later point, then we will continue to fight this bill with everything we have got, including in the courts".

At the same time, ActionSA's Lerato Ngobeni said the bill does not address the structural deficiencies in the education sector. 

“It proposes relatively cosmetic and poorly-costed changes and additions to a system that frankly requires a near-complete overhaul to ensure access to quality education. We are particularly disheartened by the Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube's failure to persuade the president otherwise, despite widespread concerns raised by parents, educators, civil society, and her own vociferous opposition, which she has seemingly abandoned.”

The Freedom Front Plus welcomed the president's decision to delay the signing of the bill’s contentious clauses. 

"During the upcoming talks, the FF Plus will do everything in its power to restrict the implementation of the objectionable parts of the law. The FF Plus will, as in this case, continue to leverage its position in the GNU to fight for all South Africans' rights.”