POLL | Is it fair for matric results to be released in the media?

An urgent application by the information regulator to prevent the publication of the 2024 matric results in the media will be heard in the Pretoria high court on Tuesday.

The results, to be announced next week, have become the subject of a legal battle due to concerns about the release of personal data.

This follows a ruling two weeks ago in which the information regulator fined the department of basic education (DBE) R5m for failing to comply with an enforcement notice issued in November. The notice required the department to undertake not to publish the results in the media. The fine emphasised the regulator's concerns about the privacy of students and their personal information.

Minister of basic education Siviwe Gwarube defended the publication of the results, in November last year saying: “We are not publishing information that should be concealed.”

Gwarube said while the results would be shared with the public, only candidates' exam numbers would be printed, with personal names excluded to protect privacy.

The issue echoes a similar controversy that emerged in January 2022 when the department decided to stop publishing the results in newspapers and online.

This decision was contested in court by AfriForum, Maroela Media and a matric pupil who argued that the results should be made publicly available, with the caveat that students' names and surnames should not be included. The court ruled in their favour, allowing the publication of results while safeguarding students' identities.

As the date for the release of the 2024 results draws near, the legal battles surrounding their release continue to highlight the ongoing tension between transparency and privacy in South Africa’s education system.

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