The Congress of the People (COPE) has written an open letter to Minister of Higher Education and Training‚ Blade Nzimande‚ questioning standards at Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges. The letter asks: “Has anything happened to enhance the image of the TVET colleges and have the outcomes in anyway convinced learners that these colleges are not the dumping ground for those who could not make it in the academic stream?”The letter declares that TVET colleges are “the Cinderella of education… There is no emphasis on stringent recruitment criteria for lecturers and there is no special focus on the range and depth of the curriculum.”The party noted that TVET exam results had not been published‚ and have also not been analysed in the way Grade 12 results are analysed‚ suggesting that “your department and the ruling party accord no value to TVET colleges and would like to draw no attention to them”.The party asked: “How many of the learners who exit these colleges with qualifications are employable and get readily employed? How many of them become successful entrepreneurs? The nation needs to know the outcomes so that their value to society and young people can be fairly assessed.“Further education and training must live up to its promises and equip learners with marketable skills. Greater proficiency in language‚ numeracy‚ accountancy‚ computing and economics must‚ in our view‚ be the foundation of further education and training. Is this happening Dr Nzimande?“South Africa’s young people are deeply disillusioned with you‚ your departing and the government. Their hopes are being dashed while you and the President are delighted to have a hearty laugh in the midst of despair.” ..