Q&A with Cosas: Some ANC leaders want schools open 'for their own business arrangements'

• Cosas has accused some ANC leaders of insisting schools should remain open, purely for their own business interests.
• While it is arguing for schools to close, it says this doesn't mean forfeiting the academic year.
• Cosas has proposed that churches and other community-based organisations step in and assist with school nutrition programmes.

Some may be arguing for and against the closure of the country's schools in the face of rapidly increasing Covid-19 infections, but the Congress for South African Students (Cosas) is adamant that a national shutdown is the only way to go.

Last week, Cosas resolved at its first national executive committee that the continued phasing-in of schools was not in the best interests of the country's learners.

The organisation affiliated with the governing party has also started engaging with its mother-body in a bid to get support for its cause.

Some ANC leaders want schools to continue for the sake of their business arrangements.

The DA says calls to close schools are reckless and further disadvantage the poor...

Our view as an organisation has always been that the privileged will always be the ones endangering the lives of young, marginalised and disadvantaged South Africans. The children of those calling for schools to continue are in private schools and they have access to e-learning.

An organisation, like the DA, cannot have the best interests of black children at heart because some of them still believe in social and economic seniority.

Thoughts on the academic year? What do you propose the government do to avoid completely losing the entire year?

There's absolutely no way we are going to forfeit the academic year. We are of a strong belief that there is no rule of law which dictates that we have to complete the academic year in December; we are not bound by anything.

The academic calendar can be extended to next year. With our Grade 12s, we are saying there must be academic camps, where learners get tested 14 days before going there, so as to complete the academic calendar.

Just how feasible is the idea of matric camps?

We have not done any synopsis, but we believe that there was a huge budget cut by the [basic education] department since a lot of activities [have been halted]. [That] money can be redirected to the camps and some of the money to fund it will obviously come from the Solidarity Fund and the R500 billion stimulus package.

That's if they really care about the future of this nation.

Is Cosas concerned about the feeding schemes which benefit many children but can't help when schools are closed?

We want the NSNP (National School Nutrition Programme) to continue because more than nine million learners depend on it for a decent meal. When schools become camp sites, churches and other community centres can be identified to feed the learners who are not in school in that particular period.

The issue of infrastructure remains a sore point: What does Cosas think can be done about this?

We deliberated over the schooling infrastructure issue during our last NEC and feel strongly that it's sad to still have schools using pit toilets. Some buildings are still those that were built by [apartheid era minister] Pik Botha during apartheid; it's a real shame for a normal human being.

The infrastructure is not conditioned to accommodate normal people, more especially in our rural areas… this after more than 25 years since democracy.