Durban — Pressure is mounting for the Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube to resolve the matric results publication headache created by the banning of publication by the Information Regulator (IR).
KwaZulu-Natal Parents Association Chairperson Vee Gani urged the Department of Basic Education (DBE) to resolve the issue and come up with an alternative plan.
He said while he understands the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), publishing the student number did not in any way identify the child, except to someone who already knew the child and his or her exam number - which would likely be a school or a family member.
“The banning of publishing results in the media is not going to help anyone. I feel sorry for the kids. How are they going to get their results? The government must first provide a reasonable alternative for pupils to access the matric results immediately. This is something that children look forward to,” Gani said.
With only weeks remaining until the results are due, AfriForum has announced that it will mobilise its legal team to challenge the recent IR directive prohibiting the public dissemination of the matric results.
Elijah Mhlanga, spokesperson for the DBE, stated: “The department is still processing the matter internally. At the right time, we will make our steps public.”
The department has had talks with its legal unit recently and was having internal talks about the matter.
The legal challenge regarding the public dissemination of the results echoes a similar situation that arose in January 2022 when AfriForum, alongside Maroela Media and an affected matriculant, successfully contested a ban on the previous year’s results imposed by the department.
In that ruling, the court mandated the publication of the results, underscoring the importance of public access to this information.
Currently, the IR has taken the lead, having issued an enforcement notice on November 4.
The regulator’s assessment revealed that the DBE breached the POPIA law by failing to obtain consent from learners or their guardians for the publication of the 2023 National Senior Certificate examination results.
According to Alana Bailey, AfriForum’s head of cultural affairs, the public’s right to access the results outweighs privacy concerns.
“Labelling it as a violation of individuals’ right to privacy does not make sense, as only examination numbers appear in the media. The court has previously ruled in favour of AfriForum and the other parties that this does not infringe on anyone’s right to privacy,” said Bailey.
The Enforcement Notice issued by the IR dictates that all future results must be communicated through compliant means, such as direct school communication or secure SMS platforms, barring any publication in newspapers unless prior consent is obtained for the 2025 results.
Additionally, the regulator has mandated the DBE to establish a system to facilitate this consent before the next results publication.
In a statement, the IR said: “The IR found that no legal justification existed for the DBE to continue with the publication of the results in the newspapers. It directed that the results of the 2024 matriculants should not be published in the newspapers and must be made available to the learners using methods compliant with POPIA.”
Despite these developments, AfriForum remains resolute in its fight for public interest.
Bailey reiterated their commitment to ensure that this year’s matriculants will also be able to receive their results on media platforms as they have traditionally done.
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