Admin
24 Sep, 2025
UDESMO calls for justice and protection for learners across South Africa!
Statement by Lucia Matomane, UDESMO Eastern Cape Provincial Chairperson The United Democratic Students’ Movement (UDESMO) is horrified by the continuing violation of children in schools by those who are meant to protect them. The recent flood of cases, from St John’s College in Mthatha (Eastern Cape), to Tiyelelani Secondary in Soshanguve (Gauteng), from St Bernard High in Bloemfontein (Free State), to Thubalethu Secondary in Pinetown (KwaZulu-Natal), and Sunward Park High in Boksburg (Gauteng), shows that what should be a place of learning has become a hunting ground for predators hiding behind the title of “teacher.” We cannot pretend these are isolated incidents. Girls as young as 12 and 14 are being preyed upon. They are being impregnated, forced into abortions, infected with diseases, and threatened into silence. These crimes are ripping futures away from young people before their lives have even begun. The pain and anger of learners are boiling over. When pupils are forced to protest and shut down schools just to be heard, it shows the system has failed them. The silence of adults who should act faster is part of the problem. But there are signs that justice can prevail. In one case, a teacher who impregnated a learner, infected her with HIV, and then tried to escape responsibility was struck off the roll and ordered by a court to pay maintenance. That is what it looks like when the law works — but it should never take this long, and it should never be the exception. UDESMO demands more than words of sympathy. We demand: • No bail for accused teachers; our children’s lives matter more than the freedom of predators. • Swift prosecutions and maximum sentences for offenders. • Educators found guilty of sexual offences against learners must be struck off the roll and permanently listed the National Child Protection Register. • Real support for survivors in the form of counselling, protection, and dignity. We say enough is enough. Our schools must be safe. Our teachers must be trustworthy. And our generation refuses to accept a future where classrooms are places of fear.
Admin
25 Sep, 2025
UDMYV demands justice at JS Skenjana Senior Secondary School
Statement by Zintombi Sododile, Chairperson of United Democratic Movement Youth Vanguard in the Eastern Cape The United Democratic Movement Youth Vanguard (UDM Youth Vanguard) in the Eastern Cape is appalled by the allegations of sexual harassment and drug abuse at JS Skenjana Senior Secondary School in Dutywa. We stand in solidarity with the victims and condemn these acts in the strongest possible terms. A former learner from JS Skenjana Senior Secondary School recently took to social media to expose teachers who, despite serious allegations of sexual abuse, remain employed at the school. She stated that these allegations have been public knowledge for years, yet no decisive action has been taken. The UDM Youth Vanguard in the Eastern Cape finds this deeply disturbing and demands that the Department of Education act without delay to address these matters. We call on all learners who have experienced or witnessed any form of abuse to come forward and report these cases to law enforcement, especially if they fear intimidation. We assure all learners of our unwavering support and will stand with you throughout the process. We note that, tragically, one of the teachers implicated in these allegations, reportedly, suffered a heart attack upon discovering he was trending on social media for his involvement. While we cannot verify the circumstances surrounding his death, our focus remains on ensuring justice for the victims and preventing such incidents in the future. The UDM Youth Vanguard of the Eastern Cape demands that the Department of Education and the South African Police Service (SAPS) take immediate and decisive action to protect learners and hold perpetrators accountable. We will closely monitor this situation and advocate for the rights and dignity of learners to be safeguarded. In addition, the selling of drugs to learners in a nearby field is a serious concern that requires immediate attention from law enforcement. We urge the SAPS to increase patrols and ensure the safety of learners. UDM Youth Vanguard of the Eastern Cape welcomes the Eastern Cape Department of Education investigations into multiple cases of alleged sexual abuse across several schools in the province, and MEC Fundile Gade condemnation of such acts, as well as his vow to take decisive action to protect children's constitutional rights. We also welcome Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube announcement that urgent steps to address reports of sexual abuse and disruptions to teaching in schools across the Eastern Cape will be taken. The UDM Youth Vanguard of the Eastern Cape’s key demands: • Immediate action from law enforcement to protect learners and hold perpetrators accountable. • Swift and decisive action from the Department of Education to investigate and address the allegations, • Increased patrols and safety measures to prevent drug sales and abuse, • Support and protection for victims and witnesses, • Implementation of comprehensive safety protocols in schools to prevent future incidents. • Mandatory training for educators and staff on identifying and reporting abuse. • Regular monitoring and evaluation of school safety measures. We believe that every learner has the right to a safe and supportive learning environment, free from fear and intimidation. The UDM Youth Vanguard in the Eastern Cape fully aligns with our mother body, the United Democratic Movement, in its stance of zero tolerance for any form of abuse or sexual misconduct, particularly within educational institutions.
Admin
22 Sep, 2025
UDM calls for a festive season free of drunk driving tragedies
Statement by Zandile Phiri, Acting Secretary General of the United Democratic Movement The United Democratic Movement (UDM) notes with deep concern the alarming rise in drunk driving cases across South Africa. In KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) alone, 93 motorists were arrested in a single weekend, bringing the total number of arrests since 15 August to 293. These included 33 arrests in Kokstad, 24 in Pietermaritzburg and 16 in Ladysmith. These figures are a stark reminder that reckless behaviour on our roads continues to endanger lives. This is not unique to KZN. In June, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department reported 226 motorists arrested in a single week for driving under the influence. In the Western Cape, between 30 June and 6 July, 23 people lost their lives in road crashes while 57 motorists were arrested for drunk driving in that same week. These reports illustrate that drunk driving is not a provincial problem but a national crisis that requires urgent coordinated intervention. As the festive season approaches, a period when alcohol consumption, travel and road use are at their highest, we must confront the devastating consequences of drunk driving. Every arrest represents a life that could have been lost, a family that could have been shattered or a community left grieving. The UDM commends the dedication of law enforcement officers across the provinces who have prevented potential tragedies. However, the numbers show that more must be done. The UDM therefore calls for: 1. Stronger enforcement and visible policing on all major routes and in high-risk areas. 2. Increased breathalyser checks, patrols and roadblocks, particularly during peak travel periods. 3. Expanded public awareness campaigns that highlight the devastating human cost of drunk driving. 4. Greater community participation to support road safety initiatives and report reckless behaviour. The UDM also makes a direct appeal to all South Africans. Stop this behaviour before more innocent lives are lost. Do not drink and drive. Choose responsibility over recklessness. Protect yourself, your loved ones and every other road user. South Africa cannot afford to normalise drunk driving. The safety of law-abiding motorists, passengers and pedestrians depends on a collective effort to change behaviour, enforce accountability and protect lives on our roads.
Admin
22 Sep, 2025
Schools must be safe: UDM calls out national scandal of sexual abuse
Statement by Zandile Phiri, Acting Secretary General of the United Democratic Movement The United Democratic Movement (UDM) is outraged and heartbroken by the recent reports of sexual abuse, harassment and misconduct involving educators across our country. In just the past month, cases have surfaced in Gauteng, the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and the Free State which exposes a deep and systemic crisis in our education system. Recent incidents show the scale of this scourge. In Gauteng, teachers at Tiyelelani Secondary in Soshanguve were removed after protests exposed a pattern of sexual assault, while at Sunward Park High in Boksburg a teacher was dismissed for abusing pupils. In Bronkhorstspruit, a deputy principal faces charges of raping a nine-year-old and was let free on bail. In the Eastern Cape, St John’s College in Mthatha saw mass protests after allegations that teachers impregnated pupils and forced them into abortions, while further cases have surfaced in Dutywa and surrounding schools. In KwaZulu-Natal, teachers at Thubalethu Secondary in Pinetown are under investigation for molesting learners, while in Kokstad a teacher was arrested with weapons and stolen vehicles which raises further questions about vetting and oversight. In the Free State, learners from St Bernard High in Bloemfontein used social media to expose years of harassment by teachers, including explicit images and physical advances. These are not isolated cases. They reveal how schools across South Africa are failing in their most basic duty which is to keep children safe. Too often it has taken pupil protests, community outrage or viral social media posts for authorities to act. This points to a pattern of systemic neglect and silence. The UDM is clear. South African children cannot wait another day for change. We therefore demand urgent interventions. 1. Mandatory reporting of all allegations of sexual misconduct, with consequences for any adult who covers up such cases. 2. Immediate suspension and vetting of accused educators pending investigations, with permanent deregistration for those found guilty. 3. Swift criminal prosecutions that treat these cases with the seriousness they deserve, ensuring perpetrators are jailed and not quietly dismissed. 4. No bail for accused educators or authority figures facing charges of sexual abuse against learners. Allowing them back into communities, places children at further risk and undermines faith in the justice system. 5. Psychosocial support through counsellors and social workers permanently based in schools. 6. Accountability for principals and school governing bodies who fail to act, since inaction enables abuse to continue. Schools must be sanctuaries of learning, not sites of trauma. Our children’s right to safety and dignity is non-negotiable and the UDM will continue to press for systemic reforms to end this national shame.
Admin
19 Sep, 2025
Porous borders fuel illicit trade: time to act
Statement by Zandile Phiri, Acting Secretary General of the United Democratic Movement The United Democratic Movement is alarmed by the rise in illicit cigarettes and alcohol in South Africa. These crimes rob the state of revenue, endanger public health, and weaken confidence in law enforcement. Recent cases show how criminal syndicates exploit porous borders, weak controls, and the complicity of some South Africans. Recently, in Musina, Limpopo, five SANDF members and two undocumented Zimbabwean nationals were arrested after illicit cigarettes worth R300,000 were found hidden at the Artonvilla military base. In the Cape Winelands, seven Somali nationals were detained at a Klapmuts facility where thousands of litres of ethanol and alcohol production equipment were seized. In Phoenix, Durban, police confiscated 1,500 bottles of illicit alcohol valued at R468,000 and arrested undocumented migrants working as delivery riders. These examples illustrate a pattern. While foreign nationals are often visible in these crimes, South Africans, including officials in uniform, play a central role in enabling and profiting from them. The South African Revenue Service has estimated that illicit alcohol cost the state R16.5 billion in lost tax revenue in 2024. It is reported that nearly one in five drinks consumed is illegal. Communities are exposed to unsafe products, while legitimate businesses lose jobs and investment. The UDM calls for urgent action. Border security and immigration enforcement must be strengthened. Corruption within security forces must be rooted out. Ethanol and alcohol production must be tightly regulated. Law enforcement agencies must coordinate to dismantle syndicates. Public awareness campaigns are needed to highlight the dangers of counterfeit goods. This is not a call to stigmatise foreign nationals, but to recognise that organised crime flourishes through cross-border networks, local collusion and weak enforcement. South Africa cannot afford to lose billions of rand and sacrifice lives to criminal profiteering.
Admin
17 Sep, 2025
Jongikhaya crisis exposes broken promises on pit toilet eradication
Statement by Yongama Zigebe, Councillor in the City of Johannesburg for the United Democratic Movement and Chairperson of the S79 Committee on Gender, Youth and People with Disabilities The United Democratic Movement (UDM) warned earlier this year that the Department of Basic Education’s failure to meet its 31 March 2025 pit latrine eradication deadline would have real consequences. Today, those fears have been confirmed by the shocking conditions at Jongikhaya Junior Secondary School in Lusikisiki, Eastern Cape, where teachers and learners are forced to share collapsing pit toilets. Teachers have even surrendered one of their own toilets for Grade R learners, after a child narrowly avoided falling into a crumbling pit. This is not just neglect, it is an insult to the dignity, safety, and rights of our children. In April, the UDM, now a proud participant in the Government of National Unity, expressed deep disappointment when this administration missed its own pit latrine eradication deadline. Our role in government does not silence us. On the contrary, it strengthens our responsibility to highlight failures and demand urgent corrective action. A missed target in this case is not a small bureaucratic slip; it is the extension of a public health crisis that continues to endanger children. Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube claimed that 93 percent of pit toilets had been eradicated, but civil society groups such as SECTION27 raised serious concerns that this progress was being measured against an outdated 2018 audit, and that many schools with dangerous pit toilets had simply been overlooked. The situation at Jongikhaya proves that our warnings were not alarmist, they were accurate. Learners here continue to risk their lives daily because of collapsing toilets, while parents now tell their children to use the bushes instead, trading one unsafe environment for another. The Eastern Cape Department of Education has reportedly admitted that Jongikhaya is not even on the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) programme, despite years of pleas from the school. This is a betrayal of the community and of the constitutional rights of learners. This crisis is not only about one school. It is the result of decades of poor planning, missed targets, and billions of rands underspent or misallocated, while rural schools continue to be treated as second-class. The GNU cannot repeat the mistakes of past administrations. We must be honest with the public: unless we act decisively, learners will continue to pay the price for government neglect. The UDM therefore calls on Minister Gwarube to: 1. Prioritise Jongikhaya JSS for emergency sanitation upgrades before a tragedy occurs. 2. Conduct a new, transparent national audit of all schools still using pit latrines, and make the results public. 3. Publish a clear, time-bound implementation plan to eradicate all pit toilets, with no further extensions. 4. Ringfence funds transparently for rural school infrastructure, with community oversight to prevent underspending and corruption. 5. Work with civil society and the private sector to accelerate safe sanitation projects. South Africa cannot afford another empty promise. The dignity and safety of our children must come first. Jongikhaya is not just another case, it is living proof that government’s failure to deliver on its own deadlines has left our children in danger. The UDM will continue to raise its voice within the GNU and outside of it, ensuring that the safety, dignity, and future of learners are placed above political convenience. We will not rest until every learner in South Africa has access to safe and dignified school infrastructure. Note: When Cllr Zigebe served as the Secretary General of the UDM, he championed the eradication of pit latrines as a matter of human rights and learner dignity. His presentation to Parliament in November 2023, alongside the Nguvu Collective, cemented his role as a leading voice on this issue. Today, even in his capacity as councillor, he continues to act as a spokesperson for the thousands of learners still forced to endure unsafe and undignified sanitation conditions, ensuring that this campaign remains alive in both Parliament and the public domain.
Admin
17 Sep, 2025
No Space, No Future? UDESMO says Enough!
Statement by Lucia Matomane, UDESMO Eastern Cape Provincial Chairperson The United Democratic Students’ Movement (UDESMO) in the Eastern Cape has long been outraged by the persistent crisis in higher education. For years, students have been forced to carry the burden of the government’s failure to plan, NSFAS’s chaos, and issues like universities that reward executives while neglecting learners. Each academic year brings the same broken promises, the same delays, and the same exclusion of thousands of young people who only seek the chance to study further. This year, 850,000 matriculants will sit for exams, but only half of them will find a place in universities, TVETs, or CET colleges. The rest will be left behind. Imagine working hard to pass matric, only to be told there is no space for you. That is not just bad planning, it is a betrayal of our generation. At the same time, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is collapsing under the weight of its own failures. Kimberley is the latest example, centred on Sol Plaatje University, where landlords housing more than 500 students have not been paid for over a year. Businesses are closing, jobs are being lost, and students now face the threat of eviction. This is not a “Kimberley issue,” it is a national crisis that repeats itself every year. Meanwhile, vice-chancellors and executives continue to pocket millions while students sleep in libraries, go hungry, and drop out because allowances never arrive. The inequality is staggering, and it proves that the system serves the powerful, not the students. • Now we are told that a “war room” will solve these problems. But students do not need another committee. We need urgent action. Minister Manamela’s war room must address the following issues: • Pay landlords now to stop evictions. • Expand the number of student spaces for 2026 so that no deserving learner is left behind. • Ensure safe, affordable housing by funding universities and TVET colleges to expand residences, and by holding NSFAS and accredited private providers accountable for the conditions students live in. • Stop rewarding executives with inflated salaries while students are denied basic dignity. • Think long term: expand infrastructure, build new universities and TVET colleges, and create the capacity to serve the next generation of students instead of leaving them stranded year after year. The truth is that the Department of Higher Education and Training has failed to plan for the long term. In 2026, we will see the same heartbreak as in 2025: young people arriving at campuses only to be turned away. For 30 years, successive ministers have wasted opportunities and resources, while the system remains stuck in crisis mode. Year after year, students pay the price for their inaction. We as UDESMO say: enough is enough. We will not be silent while our generation is robbed of opportunity. We will organise, we will mobilise, and we will hold government, NSFAS, and institutions accountable. Students cannot wait. Our future cannot be postponed. Inclusion now!
Admin
17 Sep, 2025
Service delivery in crisis: Merafong residents left to fend for themselves
Statement by Ndidi Gcalangobuthi, UDM Councillor in Merafong City Local Municipality The United Democratic Movement (UDM) in Merafong City notes with deep concern Merafong City Municipality’s poor governance and worsening finances that have resulted in residents enduring prolonged service disruptions. The recent case of a private individual drilling a borehole in his yard as a means of providing water after residents in Merafong have endured three weeks without, underscores a serious breakdown in the municipality’s duty to its residents. It is deeply concerning that residents are being forced to do what municipalities should. Currently, Rand Water is owed over R1.41 billion by the Merafong City Local Municipality which has resulted in an imposed 40% water restriction in the area, leaving taps dry for weeks. It can be agreed that the domino effect of chronic mismanagement has resulted in low revenue collection rates, operational losses, debt accumulation and escalating tariffs. A clear indication of municipal collapse. While these failures can be viewed as mere technicalities, residents in affected areas bear the burden of governance failures that undermine health, dignity and the right to water. Ensuring provision of basic services is municipalities’ legal obligation, yet residents are forced to bear the costs and risks of government negligence. The UDM in Merafong City further notes that this crisis is worsened by the growing culture of non-payment of rates and taxes. When people do not pay, the municipality loses vital revenue and service delivery grinds to a halt. At the same time, we cannot ignore that many families in Merafong are struggling with poverty and unemployment and simply cannot afford ever-increasing tariffs. This is why the whole system must be fair: those who are able to pay must do so, while government must create a safety net for those who genuinely cannot. Without this balance, Merafong will continue to sink deeper into collapse and ordinary residents will suffer most. We demand accountability from Merafong’s leadership and from provincial and national authorities tasked with oversight. The failure to act decisively will deepen the collapse of governance and further strip residents of their constitutional rights.
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