/ 3 April 2006

Governing bodies split

The only two organisations in South Africa that have been representing the interests of school governing bodies (SGBs) have both split -- ahead of the next round of SGB elections that will start next month.

The only two organisations in South Africa that have been representing the interests of school governing bodies (SGBs) have both split — ahead of the next round of SGB elections that will start next month.

Though the new SGB landscape, which now consists of four organisations, has divided an already weak parent sector, it will give SGBs a wider choice in terms of membership. The two new bodies have no links with established education organisations.

Last year, the Gauteng branch of the Federation of Associations of Governing Bodies of South Africa (Fedsas), which represents mainly former white Afrikaans schools, decided to go its own way, forming a new structure called the Governors Alliance (GA).

Similarly, members of the National Association of School Governing Bodies (NASGB) Gauteng branch split from the mother organisation. The new United Front for School Governing Bodies (UFSGB) managed to attract senior members from the NASGB in Gauteng.

Leaders of both breakaway groups said the splits were preceded by internal differences.

We have tried to address the issues within the organisation for a very long time. The turning point was during a conference last year where the constitutional principles of the organisation were clearly violated, said Bobo Mokoena, president of UFSGB. Mokoena is the former secretary of the NASGB.

Every organisation operates around constitutional principles. But when people in leadership positions start to violate their own constitution, then you know you have a problem, said Mokoena.

He said the Soweto region of the NASGB also contributed to the break-up. It wanted to operate independently of the mother body, by opening its own bank account and recruiting schools to affiliate directly to it, instead of the national body, thereby undermining the NASGB leadership.

He says the new organisation enjoyed support from all but three provinces: the Northern Cape, Eastern Cape and Western Cape.

The GAs split from Fedsas has been precipitated by differences around resources, leadership and vision.

Cathy Callaghan, who is the secretary of GA, said the organisation felt that our schools are getting more diverse and mixed — in Gauteng in particular — therefore there was a need to transform and address the dynamics of a new society.

Another burning issue related to decentralisation of powers. Fedsas was reluctant to give autonomy to provinces and wanted everything to be controlled from Bloemfontein, the current organisations headquarters, she said.

Callaghan said they were also not happy with the high fees charged by the national office. Initially it cost R1,75 per learner, but it suddenly jumped to R5, in terms of which R3 went to provinces while the national office got R2.

She claims her organisation has 285 members, mostly from Gauteng, and that they are working on a strategy to go national.

But Fedsas chairperson Paul Colditz painted a different picture. He said the fundamental cause of the split had to do with the fact that provinces opposed the unitary system of governance.

It is expensive to run autonomous provinces. It undermines service delivery, unity, quality, and that is why we insisted on a unitary system. At any rate South Africa is one country, said Colditz. He claimed that the split had positive spin-offs for Fedsas as it created unity among members.

Madlozi Mtshoeni, deputy-director in the school of initial teacher education at the University of Fort Hare, said the recent fallout would certainly have a negative impact on the forthcoming elections.

Instead of concentrating on mobilisation, they will be bickering and jostling for space.

He said the state of SGBs does not inspire confidence in that they do not operate professionally. He said: Most of these entities are just loose associations that do not have clear programmes for their members.

Well-structured and constituted SGBs should be able to keep the education department on its toes.

But for as long as they are not properly constituted, there is no way the government can take them seriously nor can they blame the department of education for not looking after them, said Mtshoeni.

Sbusiso Bayeni, who teaches education management, leadership and policy in the department of education at the University of KwaZulu-Natal said: My feeling is if you have various structures pursuing the same objective, you are definitely going to have a problem.

He said the elections are crucial, as most parents needed to be empowered about their responsibilities.

This is the fourth round of SGB elections since 1994 and the third-biggest in the country — after national and local government elections. The SGB election period will be determined by each of the nine provincial departments of education.