20/08/2025
BELA Regulations: A Gross Mistake That Betrays South African Children
By Hon. Siphiwe Moyo-Mbatha, Whip of the Opposition in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature
The Department of Basic Education has made what can only be described as a gross and dangerous mistake by introducing BELA Regulations that extend full admission rights to undocumented learners. As the Opposition Whip, and as a proud South African, I cannot allow this injustice to pass without the loudest possible rejection.
A Betrayal of South African Learners
Our public schools are already buckling under the weight of overcrowded classrooms, underqualified teachers, and infrastructure collapse. Thousands of South African children sit on waiting lists or learn under trees. Yet, instead of fixing this crisis, the Department now proposes that learners without documentation must be treated “equally entitled” to public education as South African learners.
This is not compassion. This is betrayal.
The State Outsourcing Its Failures
What the regulations effectively do is outsource the incompetence of the Department of Home Affairs and the porous borders of our country to schools and teachers. Principals are now required to submit affidavits, chase down missing documents, and report undocumented learners all while struggling to deliver quality education.
Schools must be centres of learning, not immigration processing offices.
Exploiting the South African Taxpayer
Let us be clear: public education is funded by South African taxpayers. It is fundamentally unjust to ask poor and working-class citizens who are themselves desperate for decent education for their children to subsidise undocumented persons who are not accounted for in our national planning or budgets.
This is not fairness. This is exploitation.
Safety and Security Ignored
We cannot ignore the reality that undocumented migration is closely tied to criminal syndicates, human trafficking, and drug smuggling. By normalising undocumented learners in schools, government is turning a blind eye to the safety of South African children. The Department should be working hand in hand with Home Affairs and security clusters to tighten immigration control not diluting our education system in the name of populism.
The Opposition’s Call
We, as the Opposition, demand the immediate withdrawal of this section of the BELA Regulations. South Africa’s education system must serve the children of this Republic first. Anything less is a violation of our sovereignty, a betrayal of our Constitution, and an insult to every parent who sacrifices to send their child to school.
The Department of Basic Education must be reminded:
Your first duty is to South African children.
Your first loyalty is to South African families.
Your first responsibility is to the future of this nation.
Anything else is unacceptable.
