DA Limpopo provincial leader Jacques Smalle spoke to Review shortly after his meeting with the Limpopo MEC for education Thembisile Nwedamutswu today ( Thursday November 6). The meeting that was requested by the DA following serious allegations of food tampering at schools in Limpopo. According to reports five children had already died in the past three months in what is believed to be food tampering by one or more of the companies caught in a war to win the tender for the feeding scheme at schools in Limpopo.

The MEC said that even though the report states five children died the department is skeptical  over the first four deaths, as the children who died were also part of initiation schools and that the matter must be investigated first.

One positive thing that came out of the meeting is that both the DA and the department feel that they would rather see a child go without food, than a child dying of food from a feeding scheme. In being pro-active the department has suspended all suppliers from delivering any food to schools.

According to the MEC the department is still  waiting for reports.

Smalle said he was particularly concerned about the fact that more and more evidence point to the fact that the food has been contaminated on purpose and that even in the Auditor General’s (AG) report this matter was highlighted.

“We will keep an  eye on the process when it comes to the handling and delivering of food as it seems that none of the measures in place are followed,” Smalle said.

The MEC promised to give this situation her utmost attention.

The DA will closely monitoring to see what happens.

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Feeding scheme could be the cause of 5 deaths so far