Matric Finals Start Date Amended to Avoid Clashes with Elections

• The Department of Education has consulted with teachers unions and governing bodies to move the date of the NSC exams
• Grade 12s will now be writing their NSC exams starting from 27 and 28 October rather than in November, as previously planned
• The above also allows for eligible students to go out and cast their votes on 1 November during the local government elections

The Basic Education Department has decided to bring the 2021 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams as it was supposedly going to clash with the local government elections. Grade 12s were supposed to start writing three different papers on 1 November.

Now, matrics will be writing from 27 and 28 October, according to the Education Department. The news follows a meeting that was hosted by Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga and other MECs on Wednesday, 15 September.

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Elijah Mhlanga, the education department spokesperson, said in a statement that the changes will allow for 18 and older students to be able to vote, according to News24.

SABC News reported that Mhlanga went on to say that various consultations with stakeholders, teacher unions and governing bodies were held before the decision to move the exams was made. He then explained that grade 12s are just five weeks away from starting their finals and therefore it was imperative to choose an adequate and inclusive timetable.

Songezo Songi Sibutha said:

"Well done to the CEM and the minister, I was crossing fingers thinking that these sessions were to be put after 07 Dec."

South African Learners Command - SALC wrote:

"The SALC rejects this and will request the Minister of COGTA to proclaim the date of the Local Government Elections earlier than the 1st of November so as to provide Learners with the weekend of the 30th and 31st to prepare for their exams properly."

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Local government elections set for Monday 1 November, campaigning will be allowed

Previously, Briefly News reported that South Africans can start preparing to cast their votes as the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has announced the date local government elections will take place.

Speaking at a press briefing to proclaim the date of municipal elections, Dlamini-Zuma set the election date for Monday, 1 November, according to SABC News. The new date will officially be tabled after voter registration weekend which takes place on 20 September.

She said that date cannot be gazetted at this present time because it would force voter registration to close and she stated that it was important to allow South Africans the opportunity to register, according to The Witness.

Survey: Who would South Africans vote for, ANC still has the most support

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In another report, Briefly News reported that as South Africans are preparing to cast their votes at the upcoming local government elections in approximately 50 days, Ipsos conducted a survey to find out which political organisation South Africans would most likely vote for should the elections happen tomorrow.

Ipsos, a market research company found that some South Africans are still not keen about voting for the current political establishments, with at least 29% showing voter apathy, according to Business Tech. That means around 71% of people surveyed indicated that they would actually go to the polls.

The survey collected information from 1 501 South Africans in August. Participants of the survey were aged between 18 and 75 years. The survey revealed that while there may be dissatisfaction with the African National Congress, people would still continue to vote for the party at the next elections.

Source: Briefly News