Durban - Opposition parties in KwaZulu-Natal say they will adopt a wait-and-see approach regarding the action the KZN government has promised to take on the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) contract saga.
This follows the announcement that Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube is seeking legal opinion on the steps that should be taken regarding the non-delivery of food to schools in the province earlier in the second term.
Addressing Members of the Provincial Legislature during the special sitting of the KZN Legislature to mark Africa Day yesterday, Dube-Ncube said the government had instituted an investigation into the matter after schoolchildren went without food for days in April.
The premier expressed the government’s concern over what she labelled as misleading reports regarding the non-delivery of food in some schools, which she said had been proven incorrect by investigations conducted at the schools.
Dube-Ncube said the Department of Education was seeking legal opinion on the matter and had instituted an investigation aimed at determining whether the service provider had performed within the agreement.
“Parallel to the investigation processes that are under way, a ministerial committee on the challenges of the NSNP was instituted by the premier. In the week starting from May 2, after the extended weekend, all MECs, HODs, senior management in the Department of Education and other government departments visited schools across the province to ensure that food items were being delivered, and that children were being fed nutritious meals as expected. All challenges facing the school nutrition programme in the province had been addressed and children were indeed being fed in schools,” said Dube-Ncube.
IFP member of the Provincial Legislature, Mntomuhle Khawula, said he had not been pleased with the premier’s response, saying it lacked detail.
“Ultimately, something needs to be done, and action must be taken against those responsible for the problem. This will not end well,” said Khawula.
He agreed that the situation had improved a lot since the department decided to go back to the old system of delivering food to schools.
EFF leader Mongezi Thwala said the premier needed to take decisive action against Education MEC Mbali Frazer and officials implicated in the saga.