It became law that every school had to have water, electricity, working toilets, safe classrooms with a maximum of 40 pupils, security, and thereafter libraries, laboratories and sports facilities.
The first deadline for the norms and standards was November 2016, three years after the law was published.
However, the government failed to deliver.
In 2016, the education lobby group filed court papers to compel Motshekga to meet the infrastructure targets that the government had set to fix schools by fixing some of the loopholes in the school infrastructure law.
In the court papers presented, EE and Amatolaville Primary were cited as the two applicants versus Motshekga as the first respondent, together with her nine education MECs.
Some of the loopholes identified by the movement included an escape clause that states DBE was responsible only for fixing schools to the extent that other parts of the state, such as Eskom and the department of public works, cooperate and make their resources available.
In their application EE argued that some of wording of the law was inappropriate. It also cited a lack of public accountability obligations, demanding that school infrastructure plans be made available to members of the public.
Yesterday, acting Judge Nomawabo Msizi ruled entirely in favour of EE when she found that;
The regulation stating that infrastructure standards need only be met if cooperation and resources are forthcoming from “other government agencies and entities responsible for school infrastructure” was inconsistent with the constitution, with the South African Schools Act, and with the 2013 court order secured by EE;
The regulation referring to schools made “entirely” of inappropriate materials was inconsistent with the constitution and should be changed to “all classrooms built entirely or substantially” of inappropriate materials;
Norms and standards plans and reports must be made public; and
It was inconsistent with the constitution that plans for schools that were in place before the norms and standards were published did not have to meet the standards.
Mhlanga said the judgment was “useful”.
“Clearly we made mistakes back then which we are now in a position to correct,” he said.
Motshekga told to fix schools
Bhisho High Court finds education’s ‘escape clauses’ invalid and unconstitutional
Image: File
Some of the regulations in the the norms and standards for school infrastructure that the South African government promulgated five years ago are unconstitutional, invalid and need to be amended, the Bhisho High Court has ruled.
The court yesterday ruled in favour of Equal Education’s (EE) application to force basic education minister Angie Motshekga to fix the “loopholes” or “escape clauses” in the legislated minimum norms and standards for school infrastructure and to meet school infrastructure deadlines.
Motshekga was ordered to amend the regulations and to pay the applicant’s legal costs.
EE head of communications Leanne Jansen said this victory validated the necessity of organising young people to demand rights that would otherwise not be freely afforded to them.
Jansen said: “This momentous victory has strengthened the ability of learners, teachers, parents, communities and civil society organisations to hold the state to its duty of protecting learners’ rights to dignity, equality and education. Armed with an improved infrastructure law, EE will continue to keep a very close eye on the DBE [department of basic education] and on the provincial education departments.”
Reacting to the judgment, DBE spokesman Elijah Mhlanga admitted to the Dispatch that mistakes were made in the law and they were busy fixing them.
On November 29 2013, Motshekga published legally binding norms and standards for school infrastructure.
Battle to hold Angie to schools promises in court
It became law that every school had to have water, electricity, working toilets, safe classrooms with a maximum of 40 pupils, security, and thereafter libraries, laboratories and sports facilities.
The first deadline for the norms and standards was November 2016, three years after the law was published.
However, the government failed to deliver.
In 2016, the education lobby group filed court papers to compel Motshekga to meet the infrastructure targets that the government had set to fix schools by fixing some of the loopholes in the school infrastructure law.
In the court papers presented, EE and Amatolaville Primary were cited as the two applicants versus Motshekga as the first respondent, together with her nine education MECs.
Some of the loopholes identified by the movement included an escape clause that states DBE was responsible only for fixing schools to the extent that other parts of the state, such as Eskom and the department of public works, cooperate and make their resources available.
In their application EE argued that some of wording of the law was inappropriate. It also cited a lack of public accountability obligations, demanding that school infrastructure plans be made available to members of the public.
Yesterday, acting Judge Nomawabo Msizi ruled entirely in favour of EE when she found that;
The regulation stating that infrastructure standards need only be met if cooperation and resources are forthcoming from “other government agencies and entities responsible for school infrastructure” was inconsistent with the constitution, with the South African Schools Act, and with the 2013 court order secured by EE;
The regulation referring to schools made “entirely” of inappropriate materials was inconsistent with the constitution and should be changed to “all classrooms built entirely or substantially” of inappropriate materials;
Norms and standards plans and reports must be made public; and
It was inconsistent with the constitution that plans for schools that were in place before the norms and standards were published did not have to meet the standards.
Mhlanga said the judgment was “useful”.
“Clearly we made mistakes back then which we are now in a position to correct,” he said.
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