Why politicising schools risks long-term harm to the economy

As learners return to school for the 2026 academic year, the nation is gripped by a dangerous debate over the allocation of Grade 10 slots in national schools.

From the outset, this column holds that no matter how “educated” the debate may sound, there can be no positive outcome from turning learning institutions into village enclaves.

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} else if (now >= saleStart && now <= saleEnd) {
paywallEl.style.display = “none”;

var diffToEnd = saleEnd – now;
var totalSeconds = Math.floor(diffToEnd / 1000);
var days = Math.floor(totalSeconds / (24 * 3600));
var hours = Math.floor((totalSeconds % (24 * 3600)) / 3600);
var minutes = Math.floor((totalSeconds % 3600) / 60);
var seconds = totalSeconds % 60;

activeEl.innerHTML = `

Offer ends in…

${days}Days
${String(hours).padStart(2,’0′)}Hours
${String(minutes).padStart(2,’0′)}Minutes
${String(seconds).padStart(2,’0′)}Seconds

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function formatTime(ms) {
let totalSeconds = Math.floor(ms / 1000);
const days = Math.floor(totalSeconds / (3600 * 24));
totalSeconds %= 3600 * 24;
const hours = Math.floor(totalSeconds / 3600);
totalSeconds %= 3600;
const minutes = Math.floor(totalSeconds / 60);
const seconds = totalSeconds % 60;
return `${days}d ${hours}h ${minutes}m ${seconds}s`;
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As learners return to school for the 2026 academic year, the nation is gripped by
a dangerous debate
over the allocation of Grade 10 slots in national schools.

Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp