PORT ELIZABETH, January 5 (ANA) – The Democratic Alliance in the Eastern Cape on Thursday, welcomed the slight improvement in the 2016 matric results from 56.8 percent to 59 percent, but said it was far off the department’s goal of 70 percent.
DA Shadow MEC for Education, Edmund van Vuuren, said there was no cause for a celebration as the Eastern Cape was again the worst performing province, with the five worst performing districts, each obtaining less than 50 percent.
The Eastern Cape is the only province with districts that achieved less than 50 percent.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshega announced on Wednesday that the Eastern Cape’s matric pass rate of 63.3 percent was an increase of 1.1 percent from the 62.2 percent achieved in 2015.However the province was still the lowest performing in the country.
“The learners of this province are being badly let down by the department’s failure to meet its own targets and plans. For example, the MEC of Education has failed to fully implement his new service delivery model in reducing the 23 districts to 12 and to establish 150 circuit offices, located where schools are,” said van Vuuren.
Van Vuuren congratulated the Cradock district for again achieving the best results in the province as well as all the learners who passed their matric.
“It is time that the Premier and the MEC took a hard look at what is going wrong in the department and make the necessary changes. The learners of this province cannot continue to be sacrificed on Sadtu’s altar of appeasement because the provincial government lacks the courage to make the necessary changes,” he said.
-African News Agency (ANA)
