'Children are not billboards' is COPE's response to McDonald’s donating branded desks to schools

A DANGEROUS precedent was what the Minister of Basic Education Minister, Siviwe Gwarube, has been accused of over her recent approval of donated foldable desks being dished out to Grade 1 learners.

Gwarube has been roasted  on various social media platforms about the "wheelie schoolbag" – which converted into a desk, a chair with a solar light and USB charging portal, all in the name of making learning easier for pupils.

It has been reported that the portable plastic desks were endorsed by the department of science and innovation and Unesco as a means to improve the schooling experience of learners living in poor communities.

But Gwarube's detractors largely maintain that the plastic creations were akin to billboards and promoted the consumption of junk food. 

The Congress of the People (COPE) also raised their discontent against what they termed as an “alarming trend” of corporate branding infiltrating school classrooms.

Their reaction came after the roll out desks that convert into a school bag was done in the Eastern Cape, last week, and Gwarube announcing the McDonald’s donation.

Given the challenges of pupils, especially in poor communities, the desks were meant to ease their leaners’ daily stress of worrying about whether there will be chairs and desks available for them at school.

In a statement released by COPE, they said the move represented a dangerous compromise of children's rights and a betrayal of the state's constitutional duty to protect and uplift the most vulnerable.

“South Africa's children are not billboards for junk food corporations.

At a time when our nation grapples with an obesity epidemic and rising non-communicable diseases, disproportionately affecting working-class and rural black communities, this partnership exposes children to predatory marketing of high-fat, sugar, and salt foods,” it said.

COPE rejected the “cynical ploy” by McDonald's, which masqueraded as charity while profiting from the health crisis it helps perpetuate, and said children deserve better than to be pawns in a corporate game.

“This incident lays bare the failures of austerity and government neglect. The underfunding of education has created a vacuum that other corporations exploit for branding opportunities,” COPE said.

The political party asserted that education was a public good, but not a marketplace for private interests.

COPE called on the government to immediately recall the branded desks and for the state to provide dignified learning conditions without corporate strings attached.

It also demanded accountability from Gwarube as well as the department.

The party urged the National Treasury to reverse the disinvestment in education and ensure every child had access to a safe, healthy, and exploitation-free learning environment.

It said, “South Africa's future depends on a government that serves its people, not sells them out.”

Gwarube defended the government’s decision and said the desks were good for the children as approved by UNESCO.

In a media report, Daniel Padiachy, McDonald’s South Africa chief marketing officer, said their desk initiative was about providing hope and sending a clear message to children that they were valued, and that their education mattered.

DAILY NEWS & IOL