School feeding scheme supplier plans to sue department for defamation
One of the school feeding scheme service providers, Amandla Karabo, whose contract was terminated following recent alleged food contamination incidents, plans to sue the dep of basic education for defamation of character.
SEKHUKUNE – One of the school feeding scheme service providers, Amandla Karabo, whose contract with the Limpopo government was terminated following recent alleged food contamination incidents in the Sekhukhune district, plans to sue the department of basic education for defamation of character.
The company’s legal representative, Andrew Stephens from Dadic Attorneys, said in a letter to the national department of basic education, that their client denied any and all allegations by the department or media houses that implicated Amandla Karabo in the series of alleged contaminated food incidents.
“We further place on record that not a single one of the reported incidents emanates from any of the schools supplied by our client. It would seem from media reports that our client has been accused, and (subsequently been terminated) of poor warehouse conditions and substandard food stubs and that is for these reasons that the food contamination has occurred.
“Our client wholly and specifically denies these allegations and moreover as it stands currently, is not in receipt of a formal termination letter and has not even received the alleged reports from the department relating to the alleged investigations,” he said.
“Amandla Karabo’s greatest concern at this point is that despite being terminated by the department it would seem from media publications last week that children are still being affected by contaminated food and that corroborated efforts should be focused on eliminating any further incidents and protecting the children of our communities,” he said.
“We have received instructions to formulate a demand followed by a claim inter alia disputing the lawfulness of our client’s termination as well as of their contract as well as a claim for damages suffered by reason of the defamatory allegations made regarding our client.
“While our client is adamant about vindicating themselves from these allegations, they also recognise the seriousness of the incidents and express their deepest sympathy for the families affected,” he said.
National department of basic education spokesperson, Elijah Mhlanga, said they were in possession of the letter. He said the department would reply to the letter in a court of law.
Mhlanga further denied that any child had died after they ate contaminated food received through the National Schools Nutrition Programme (NSNP) and said school feeding programmes were only suspended in schools located in the Sekhukhune district, which had been affected, and not the entire province, as reported in the media last week.
The department’s claim that no children died was refuted by DA Limpopo leader Jacques Smalle who earlier said he laid five charges of murder against the education department last week.
Provincial police spokesperson Col Ronél Otto confirmed that two other charges were laid; one at the Jane Furse police station and another by the principal of the Hlakudi Primary School against the schools’ feeding scheme service providers for attempted murder.
Mhlanga said the national department was very concerned over the contamination of food.
“We are doing all we can to address the matter. The health and safety of the learners is of paramount importance to government.
“This is why the department introduced the programme in the first place. We will continue to safeguard the unqualified Constitutional rights of learners,” he said.
