South Africa student union calls for schools shutdown in province amid scholar transport strike

The Congress of South African Students (COSAS) has called on the Gauteng Department of Education to shut down all schools in the province until disruptions to learner transport services are resolved.

Thousands of pupils remain unable to attend classes due to an ongoing strike by scholar transport operators, with payment disputes between the operators and the provincial education department still unresolved.

The Gauteng Small Bus Operators Council says many of its members have not received outstanding payments owed to them, prompting operators affiliated with various scholar transport services to stop transporting learners.

The transport dispute comes amid heightened concern over learner transport safety following the recent Vanderbijlpark crash in which 14 learners died after a scholar transport vehicle was involved in a collision.

‘Negligent driving’

A 22-year-old scholar transport driver is expected to appear in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate’s Court, facing multiple counts of culpable homicide as well as charges of reckless and negligent driving.

Authorities have also intensified enforcement against unsafe learner transport practices. This follows another incident in Lenasia, south of Johannesburg, where a minibus taxi driver was arrested for transporting more than 20 schoolchildren in a single vehicle and operating without a valid permit.

Police have since begun impounding vehicles and arresting unlicensed drivers, prompting protests from learner transport operators who say enforcement actions have worsened tensions within the sector.

The disruptions have left many pupils stranded, forcing some to walk long distances or miss school entirely. Sixteen-year-old Kamohelo Molefe from Villa Liza in Boksburg told state media SABC the strike has had a severe impact on learners from low-income households.

“The strike has affected many of us because sometimes we arrive late at school. Our parents cannot afford money for a taxi, especially if there are three learners in one house. We walk long distances to get to school,” Molefe said.

‘Unjust to learners’

COSAS coordinator in Gauteng, Ntefeleng Sonke, described the situation as unacceptable and said schooling cannot continue normally while many learners are unable to attend.

“It is therefore unjust and unacceptable for teaching and learning to continue while other learners remain stranded due to operational challenges affecting scholar transport services. In defence of all learner safety and educational quality, COSAS calls for the immediate shutdown of all schools around Gauteng,” Sonke said.

Affected learners have also appealed to authorities to urgently resolve the dispute. They are calling on the Gauteng Department of Education to end the impasse with operators so that normal schooling can resume.

In response to the crisis, the Gauteng Department of Education has called for calm, saying engagements are continuing to resolve payment matters linked to the Public Scholar Transport programme.

The department has also advised schools to prepare academic recovery and catch-up programmes to reduce learning losses and keep the school calendar on track.