THE provincial education department has applied for a four-month extension to meet an Mthatha High Court order that it provides every public school with adequate school furniture by May 31. Education head of department Mthunywa Ngonzo said three insurmountable obstacles to providing every public school child with a desk and chair had stymied the best efforts of the department. A lack of money, furniture tender disputes, and the fact that national and provincial treasuries had taken over the department’s furniture procurement function in April had thwarted its attempts to meet the order, Ngonzo claimed. Ngonzo wants an extension to September 30. A report by the Independent Development Trust (IDT) of the furniture needs of all public schools in the province suggests schools require some 764409 units of furniture. The Legal Resources Centre (LRC), which acted for the Centre for Child Law (CCL) and several Transkei schools in the furniture case, estimated that between 200000 and 300000 children were affected by the lack of furniture. LRC attorney Cameron McConnachie said that a costing of the IDT audit using an average price from bids already submitted shows that the department would have to pay some R421-million to deal with school furniture needs....
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