School closures over Covid-19 are off limits – minister

To discourage closures of schools by panic-stricken principals fearing the impact of the coronavirus on pupils and teachers, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga has circulated a memorandum to all provinces urging school heads to “consult before taking any action”.

This comes in the wake of the closure last week of Cowan School in Hilton in KwaZulu-Natal, and this week’s shutdown of Grayston Preparatory School over fears that people who came into contact with the coronavirus-positive families who recently went to Italy, could spread the disease.

According to basic education spokeswoman Hope Mokgatlhe, Motshekga’s directive, which has been sent to all education MECs, was aimed at “discouraging any alarmist decisions” by principals “because somebody is coughing, sneezing or has a blocked nose”.

Mokgatlhe said: “The department sees nothing special in this virus warranting the closure of institutions, changing programmes or extending school holidays.

“The minister made it clear in the memorandum that what needs to be emphasised by principals in all schools is sticking to the basics of regularly washing hands with soap and water.

“In schools where the basic education department offers nutrition or a feeding scheme, jointly with the health department, we are reminding principals to ensure water buckets are provided for children to wash their hands before eating.

“We do not want to be alarmist and make this look like a crisis.”

The precautionary measures taken by the principals of Cowan and Grayston schools were “understandable due to fear of the virus, but were stretched too far and taken out of context”, she added.

“A teacher displayed symptoms but it could not be proven that she suffered from coronavirus before being medically tested,” said Mokgatlhe.

She said school closures caused panic among pupils and parents.

“A cough, sneeze or blocked nose does not mean you have the virus. This could be normal fever symptoms, especially now we are approaching the winter season.

“The department of health is giving us leadership on medical issues and we urge principals to consult with their MECs before taking any action to close schools.

“This virus has caused a lot of paranoia and we are not going to introduce extraordinary measures. There is no need to panic.

“Principals should not be allowed to close schools willy-nilly. Also bear in mind that social media has been making the situation appear like a crisis.”

Meanwhile, the South African Emergency Personnel Union yesterday called on its members “not to respond to any suspicious Covid-19 calls without protective clothing”.

“We are fully aware that 98% of ambulances don’t have gear, including medical equipment. Our members don’t have to risk their lives,” the union said.

– brians@citizen.co.za

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