The Gauteng Department of Education vehemently refutes and rejects the misleading and sensationalist article published online by Sunday World on Wednesday, 12 November 2025, with the headline “Matric exams at risk amid alleged Gauteng school security tender corruption – DA”.
This unfortunate article, which appears to rely solely on a statement issued by the Democratic Alliance, irresponsibly questions the integrity of the National Senior Certificate examinations in the province. It claims that “as thousands of Gauteng learners continue with their matric examinations, concerns have emerged over the integrity and security of the process following allegations of widespread corruption in the province’s school security tenders”.
The said article cites further misinformation from the DA, claiming that “this corruption is happening under the watch of Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, who has failed to curb corruption in the department despite repeated promises to do so”.
This is a clear and disturbing indication that the DA’s obsession and concerted efforts to assassinate Premier Lesufi’s character have gone astray, desperately searching for any opportunity to portray the Premier in a negative light.
More so, it is deeply concerning that Sunday World proceeded to publish these sensational claims without any credible evidence. The article is essentially constructed purely on hearsay: Sunday World says the DA claims that a whistleblower claims that there is corruption. They reported this chain of allegations as fact, without even a comment from the Department itself.
This approach reflects a troubling disregard for journalistic ethics and defeats the impartiality that reporting should embody. We strongly believe that the article is misleading. It amplifies speculation and manufactures a crisis where none exists.
The GDE condemns such circulation of unverified information during a critical examination period.
According to information at our disposal, since the commencement of the NSC examinations, there has been no record of any breach in security that could compromise the integrity or facilitation of the NSC examination process in Gauteng. We can confirm that all storage and distribution points have been allocated adequate security in line with norms and standards.
Furthermore, no question papers or scripts have been reported to be compromised. All papers are handled exclusively by GDE examination officials, not by any external service providers.
“It is therefore unfortunate and irresponsible for anyone to opportunistically share information that questions the integrity of the NSC examinations without any basis,” said MEC Chiloane.
Enquiries:
Gauteng Department of Education Spokesperson
Steve Mabona
Cell: 072 574 3860
Spokesperson for Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane
Xolani Mkhwemte
Cell: 084 513 9285
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