Teachers fail to heed call

Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi

Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi

Striking Khutsong teachers and pupils have turned a deaf ear to calls from North West MEC for education, and trade unions Sadtu and Cosas to return to classes.

Mxolisi Bomvana, a Sadtu branch chairman in North West, said that though the teachers had promised to report for duty, they had not.

He said the situation was now beyond his union's control and only concerted efforts from all stakeholders would end the crisis.

"We are of the view that it is high time all parties concerned sat down to resolve the matter," said Bomvana.

He said he understood the teachers' plight: "If they do their jobs as they are supposed to, they will be regarded as sell-outs by many people in Khutsong," he said.

Merafong municipality's spokesman, Seabo Gaeganelwe, said: "It's quiet. Pupils went to the schools but teachers are not teaching."

Khutsong teachers went on strike after the area's incorporation into the North West from Gauteng.

The area's residents are resisting the incorporation.