Minister satisfied with effort of four matrics who were gang-raped

Basic education minister Siviwe Gwarube says the four pupils who were gang-raped in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, in October were able to sit for their matric exams.

Gwarube said the pupils who were raped and robbed in their rented room near their school were closely monitored and given psychosocial support.

Gwarube said weeks later, another girl suffered a similar attack.

She was speaking on Wednesday to update on Matric exams which end on Thursday.

“They will not be requiring an additional opportunity. But it is deeply unfair that those learners had to endure such trauma and then still be forced to write their [exams]. Despite what has happened to them, they wanted to write [their exams],” she said.

Gwarube described the attacks as barbaric. “These heinous acts tragically remind us of the dangers that many learners, especially young girls, face daily. As we observe the 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence, let these incidents rally all South Africans to stand against such barbaric acts.

“Schools and communities must become places of safety, not spaces of fear, violence and abuse,” said Gwarube.

She said more than 800,000 candidates completed the 2024 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams with over 50,000 markers set to begin work on Wednesday.

With over 727,000 full-time and 155,000 part-time candidates, the exams began on October 21.

“This was a massive logistical undertaking. I commend the efforts of learners, educators and administrators for their hard work,” she said.

Gwarube said despite significant successes, challenges disrupted the exam period with protests along with severe weather in Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape.

Flooding prevented 319 students from writing their exams in the Eastern Cape alone, she said.

“Contingency plans are in place to allow these learners to rewrite their exams. These incidents highlight the importance of proactive planning and collaboration with disaster management teams, which helped reduce the impact on learners, ” Gwarube said.

Results will be announced on January 13, with pupils expected to get them at their respective schools the next day.

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