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{FILE} Parents waiting in line to enrol their children in school.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has denied that the Education Department is facing a school placement crisis with over 3 000 grade 1 and 8 learners in public schools still not placed.
The challenge has seen many frustrated parents storming Education Department offices demanding their children to be placed.
WATCH | Gauteng Education Department spokesperson Steve Mabona says the main issues causing school placement backlogs are limited capacity, late applications, and parental preferences. pic.twitter.com/CxeaU6xKLO
— SABC News (@SABCNews) January 14, 2026
Lesufi was speaking in Rustevaal, in the Sedibeng region during the opening of Rustevaal Secondary School.
The Premier says that they don’t have a problem of space in the province but the main problem is that people want certain schools and they want to leave certain schools.
“I want to declare now that we don’t have a problem of spaces in the province. We have got enough classrooms to accommodate all our learners in the province. We have a problem of choice, people want certain schools and they want to leave certain schools, so our responsibility as MEC is to clean the schools.”
RELATED VIDEO | Back to school 2026 | Frustration mounts over placements
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krrNRsHtka4
