Questions about 649 criminals at the blackboard

It is still not clear when the Free State department of education will address the issue of 649 teachers who have criminal records but continue teaching.

- Masoka Dube

Responding to questions in the provincial legislature last week, Free State education MEC Julia Maboya conceded that the teachers with criminal records were still employed by the department.

Maboya failed to give a timeline as to when the department will get rid of them.

TPN Credit Bureau statistics show that in 2023 about 3.6% of the 447 123 department of education employees in South Africa had criminal records.

This included teachers, coaches and administrative personnel who had criminal convictions, while some were awaiting trial for serious offences such as murder, rape, theft and assault.

In an interview with The Citizen yesterday, Free State departmental spokesperson Haward Ndaba said he was unable to give a definitive answer: "We are still busy with the vetting process to get a full picture before a comprehensive response can be effected."

Ndaba said he was not sure when the vetting process would be completed.