By Thapelo Molefe
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube has revealed that she has received briefings from provinces regarding food poisonings, and the incidents appear to be isolated.
This comes after five children died after eating food that was allegedly expired and sold from a local spaza shop in Soweto, and 70 Grade 12 learners from various schools in the West Rand were treated in hospital following a suspected food poisoning incident that happened during a matric camp.
They have been discharged.
The minister expressed her deepest condolences to the affected families, saying: “One learner is a learner too many in our system, and it breaks my heart to have to look at the faces of parents and tell them that their loved ones are gone.”
Gwarube assured that preliminary investigations indicated that the incidents were unrelated to the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP), a R10 billion initiative providing daily meals to 9.7 million learners.
She emphasised her commitment to protecting the programme, citing its critical role in ensuring learners receive at least one nutritious meal daily.
“So that is why I seek to protect that line item in our budget at all costs, even in the face of budget cuts, because we want to make sure that the food is of quality. Number two, that learners never suffer food poisoning from the hands of the government,” she said.
On Thursday, Minister in The Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni called on South Africans to stop supporting spaza shops owned illegally by foreigners who she accused of selling poisonous food that claimed the lives of innocent children.
However, Gwarube said provincial authorities were currently investigating the source of the food poisoning, with one incident linked to the matric camp and another occurring separately in Limpopo.
“It’s unclear whether or not these learners’ bought food from a particular shop,” Gwarube said.
The minister wished the learners a speedy recovery and assured that her department was working closely with provinces to prevent similar incidents.
“When they have had such a bright future, it’s an absolute tragedy. And this is why, again, my obsession with looking after this National School Nutrition Programme is something that I’m unwavering on,” Gwarube said.
She said that they would leave no stone unturned to make sure the money for the programme was not stolen or squandered.
INSIDE EDUCATION
