Limpopo teachers allegedly using fake doctor’s notes to avoid returning to school

Limpopo’s provincial coronavirus command council (PCCC) has accused some teachers of submitting fake doctor’s certificates, on their vulnerability to Covid-19 because of comorbidities, to avoid returning to work on 6 July.

In a statement released after its meeting on Sunday, the council said education authorities had received more than 700 applications from teachers to be exempt from attending school due to comorbidities, but only 400 had been granted.

It said they were still seeing suspicious medical certificates being provided with applications “from a certain section of doctors”.

When asked for more clarity, Premier Stan Mathabatha’s spokesperson Kenny Mathivha said: “The health department, with the assistance of police, is investigating as it is believed that some of the doctors and the medical certificates are fake.

Mathivha said there was protocol in government that states that people 55 years or older, and with comorbidities, should not report for duty. He added: “The form (to be filled) requires disclosure for the disease. But some teachers are going to their private doctors. They submit certificates that don’t conform to protocol. This is prevalent among teachers.”

However, the Professional Educators Union (PEU) has dismissed the accusations.

PEU’s provincial secretary Mosadi Sekwadi said authorities were trying to force teachers to break patient-doctor confidentiality.

“Who are they to argue against doctors’ pronouncements. Let them bring their own doctors and assess the teachers.

“They can’t just go out and accuse other professionals of wrongdoing,” Sekwadi said.

‘Concerned all schools will not be ready’

All teachers and pupils are expected to return to school on 6 July, as positive cases of Covid-19 stand at 14 in schools in the province.

So far, three schools have been closed due to cases detected.

The PCCC said 46,800 additional classes were needed before the 963 000 pupils return to school.

To meet the challenge, a rotational model of teaching in about 80% of schools would be adopted, meaning that some pupils may attend classes on specific days of the week.

“The application of this model will not affect Grade 12 classes, but all other incoming cohorts,” the council said.

However, Sekwadi said the rotational model may have a negative impact on the completion of the syllabus.

“It comes back to the question of inequality in education,” she said. Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Education was also briefed about schools reopening last week.

But DA provincial leader Jacques Smalle, who also sits on the committee, expressed doubt that the province was ready for the reopening.

He said the department had indicated that for every pupil in the province to be provided with at least two masks, a total of 2.9 million were needed from the provincial department.

“I’m concerned all the schools will not be ready. We must just expect a mixture of good and bad next week,” Smalle said.

Education MEC Polly Boshielo is expected to provide more information this week.

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