Schäfer vows to continue schooling in Western Cape
Western Cape Education MEC Debbie Schäfer has vowed to continue teaching and learning in the province unless instructed otherwise by a court of law.
Schäfer was speaking on a Democratic Alliance (DA) platform on Tuesday.
Grades 7 and 12s returned to school in the Western Cape on Monday, despite the announcement by Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga on Sunday that the department had decided to push back the reopening of schools by a week.
The South African Human Rights Commission has also subsequently threatened legal action against Schäfer and her department.
"The commission is supposed to protect human rights and one of the fundamental rights is the right to education,” Schäfer said.
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“We are providing that right and working with the national minister to do that. But now they feel if all schools cannot open at the same time no school must open."
She said her mandate is to ensure that children receive an education.
"I will not stop anybody who wants to teach a child who is complying with a national minister’s national gazette and the security and safety precautions we have put in place unless a court tells me to do so.”
She added that the constitution empowers an MEC to take certain decisions.