BELA Bill leaves South Africans divided

Some South Africans have expressed mixed reactions to the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill that is set to be signed into law on Friday.

Critics of the bill argue that it undermines the authority of school governing bodies and centralises decision-making power.

Among others, the bill requires school governing bodies to submit their language policies for approval. These policies must consider the linguistic needs of the broader community.

Democratic Alliance (DA) spokesperson Willie Aucamp has confirmed that his leader John Steenhuisen will meet with President Cyril Ramaphosa before Friday.

Here’s what people have to say about the bill.

“I just think that the government is trying to take each and every right we have then people must not have any say. So I really support the DA on this one.”

“I may be wrong but I understood from someone’s comments that the BELA Bill makes provision for jailing the parents for a year if the child is not sent to school. If that is so, that’s making it even worse. ”

“Why does DA bring up threats instead of sitting down with the President or the Committee concerned and discuss this issue?”

VIDEO | BELA Bill | Prof. Mary Metcalfe on the adaptation of the bill: