Three of the eight people hired to mark matric exam papers, but arrived at the marking facility drunk and smelling of alcohol, were from the Western Cape.
According to the Western Cape Education Department’s (WCED) Director of Communications Bronagh Casey, misinformation about the incident has been circulating on social media.
After investigations, Casey said, the three markers were not drunk and were not marking papers that day, but rather arrived at a pre-marking training session smelling of alcohol.
“We take this seriously in the Western Cape. The markers did not arrive drunk, they were basically hungover,” Casey told Cape Talk in an interview on Wednesday.
They arrived on Monday morning smelling of alcohol and did admit they had gone out together the previous evening. The supervisor on duty believed they were of sober mind, just reeking of alcohol.
They were asked to leave the training facility and return the following morning to continue training. Only two who were sent home returned the following day to continue with the training.
Casey said measures would be put in place if this becomes a problem.
She also emphasised that the province takes the marking of matric results seriously, with children’s opportunities and future lives at stake. The Western Cape is the only province that implements competency tests to test the actual subject knowledge of the markers before they handle scripts.
“We want to ensure the best possible outcome for our learners in January 2019,” she said.
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