Minister of Education Angie Motshekga has secretly slammed the SA Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) as being linked to the scandal in which teachers’ jobs were sold‚ yet on Wednesday told parliament the exact opposite.

 Motshekga said during her budget vote: “No evidence points to SADTU [in the jobs scandal]‚ which has been instrumental in the improvements we have seen in rural and poor schools.”

Motshekga in her submission to the SA Human Rights Commission mentioned they were implicated in selling jobs.

 The commission is investigating if the teachers’ unions are denying children’s constitutional right to education. The Democratic Alliance laid the complaint.

Motshekga said to the commission: “The ministerial task team report on the alleged selling of posts point to some gaps in the management of appointments of personnel and has made material findings and recommendations about the role of union members‚ particularly SADTU‚ in influencing selection processes unduly.”

The Democratic Alliance spokesman on education Gavin Davis was highly critical of Motshekga’s contradictions saying she needed SADTU for her political survival so would never criticise them in public.

 However her spokesperson said it was not an apparent contradiction.

 Education ministry spokesperson Troy Martens said that Motshekga was not contradicting herself.

 She said Motshekga meant in parliament that the union‚ SADTU‚ was not behind the jobs for cash scandal‚ even while some rogue members may have been implicated.

 Motshekga said in fact the main instigators who sold jobs were district officials employed by the Department of Education.

Martens explained: “While some of the complainants may have pointed out SADTU members as selling jobs‚ there is no evidence that the organisation was found to be selling jobs for cash.

“In fact‚ SADTU was very cooperative in the investigation.”

Motshekga in her submission to the commission said that unions needed to oppose the education department in order to stay relevant.

 “It is common cause that unions would like to maintain an antagonistic approach towards employers as this has been an effective way of galvanising support among union members and it is also a way of keeping employers on their toes. This is being done to maintain the relevance of the union.”

In her submission she said that unions opposed things they weren’t actually opposed to as a “bargaining chip” to get their demands.

Despite a performance system being agreed upon 2002 to rate teachers and principal performance and their pupils’ performance it is still not implemented.

This is because the union continues to oppose it.

 “Unions are not really opposed to this policy‚ but would use them as bargaining chips to gain some of their demands‚” said the minister.

 The Council of Educators has now told her that she must now use her ministerial powers to implement this performance system to hold teachers and principals accountable for pupils’ performance.

 Motshekga said she didn’t expect such a system to be implemented smoothly because of the union’s continued opposition to it.

 Davis said: “The number one problem is that trade union bosses from the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union have captured our education system. Now the Minister knows this very well. She just doesn’t have the guts to say it in public.”