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Johannesburg - School governing body (SGB) elections held in March did not go well and at least three schools still do not have an elected body, Gauteng education MEC Panyaza Lesufi said on Thursday.
The department has investigated irregularities in SGB elections at 34 schools, he said in a written reply to a question from DA MPL Khume Ramulifho in the provincial legislature.
Lesufi said the elections were the third-largest public elections after national, provincial, and local government elections.
The investigations were into allegations of non-compliance with SGB regulations, interference from community structures and/or former SGB members, and voter intimidation.
The department could not be immediately reached for comment on the status of the investigations.
The three schools without an elected SGB were Himalaya Secondary School, where two meetings were postponed due to non-attendance of parents; Lefika Primary School, where there was non-compliance with SGB elections policy; and Roodepoort Primary School.
"[In Roodepoort] the Davidson community forum requested a postponement of the SGB elections pending the conclusion of outstanding governance related matters," Lesufi said in his reply.
Last month, Lesufi decided to close the school, but several days later re-opened it. The school was the site of several protests, during one of which police fired rubber bullets.
The parents allegedly demanded a coloured principal. They claimed the process of appointing black principal Nomathemba Molefe was flawed.
Later they alleged there was maladministration by the principal and the governing body chair.
Lesufi said at the time that one of the reasons he initially closed the school was because of “shocking intelligence” that residents wanted to burn it down.
Residents demanded that he dissolve the SGB, which he did, according to City Press.
“No one can now blame me. I have done everything humanly possible to ensure sanity and that problems at the school are resolved,” he was quoted as saying at the time.
