'Education officials hindered fraud probe'

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Professor John Volmink, the head of a task team assigned by Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga to investigate allegations that the SA Democratic Teachers' Union (Sadtu) and other unions had sold teaching posts, said on Tuesday, 22 December that officials in the department had obstructed the investigation.

"They are the only officials in the country that would not allow forensic investigators access to documents.

"This was obstruction and tricks in the Eastern Cape, showing that they are hiding something."

His comments follow a report in City Press that Volmink's interim report had uncovered the selling of teaching posts, largely in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and North West.

Volmink said officials at the province's Department of Education headquarters in Zwelitsha had demanded the investigators' identity documents when they visited the facility as part of the investigation.

The officials would not allow his team in, even after they showed their driver's licences.

Volmink said this had delayed work in the province, resulting in his team managing to work on only six of the 23 education districts.

Volmink said several irregularities in the appointment of teachers had been uncovered.

A team of investigators is scheduled to descend on the province again during the first week of next month to conduct the investigation in the remaining districts.

Eastern Cape education spokesman Loyiso Pulumani said the department would deal with the matter once a final report had been presented to it.

Source: Herald