The drawn-out legal wrangle between the Eastern Cape education department and the State Information Technology Agency (Sita) over a multimillion-rand e-learning tablet project has finally been resolved.
The two parties reached an out-of-court settlement on Thursday, bringing an end to the dispute that began in 2020.
Sita had brought an application to interdict the implementation of the department’s ICT rollout, arguing that, in terms of the Sita Act, it had the sole prerogative to procure IT requirements for government departments.
The rollout aimed to distribute 55,000 tablets to pupils across the province, targeting those in quintiles one, two and three, who faced socioeconomic challenges.
The Bhisho high court granted an interim interdict in favour of Sita on September 29 2020, halting the ICT contract between Sizwe IT Company and the department.
This resulted in the recall of the distributed tablets, affecting thousands of pupils who relied on online teaching and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic.
After protracted discussions, Sita on Thursday signed a settlement agreement with the department, agreeing to withdraw the matter from court.
The Bhisho high court subsequently made the settlement a legally binding agreement.
Eastern Cape education MEC Fundile Gade welcomed the settlement, saying it vindicated the department’s position.
“The interdict was never about the contract but business interests,” Gade said.
“We’ve followed all procurement processes, and we will continue working for the poor people of our province.”
On Friday, Gade's spokesperson, Vuyiseka Mboxela, said: “The settlement is that Sita will drop the court application against the department.”
She would not comment further.
Earlier in 2025, just days after Gade confirmed plans to revive the e-learning tablet project for 2025’s matriculants, despite an ongoing investigation into its R580m “irregular” contract, the project was finally rolled out at two schools in the province.
At the time, Gade said he was “tired” of dragged-out court cases and was forging ahead with the project for the current school year.
Daily Dispatch
Settlement reached on Eastern Cape’s multimillion-rand e-learning tablet project
Image: RANDELL ROSKRUGE
The drawn-out legal wrangle between the Eastern Cape education department and the State Information Technology Agency (Sita) over a multimillion-rand e-learning tablet project has finally been resolved.
The two parties reached an out-of-court settlement on Thursday, bringing an end to the dispute that began in 2020.
Sita had brought an application to interdict the implementation of the department’s ICT rollout, arguing that, in terms of the Sita Act, it had the sole prerogative to procure IT requirements for government departments.
The rollout aimed to distribute 55,000 tablets to pupils across the province, targeting those in quintiles one, two and three, who faced socioeconomic challenges.
The Bhisho high court granted an interim interdict in favour of Sita on September 29 2020, halting the ICT contract between Sizwe IT Company and the department.
This resulted in the recall of the distributed tablets, affecting thousands of pupils who relied on online teaching and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic.
After protracted discussions, Sita on Thursday signed a settlement agreement with the department, agreeing to withdraw the matter from court.
The Bhisho high court subsequently made the settlement a legally binding agreement.
Eastern Cape education MEC Fundile Gade welcomed the settlement, saying it vindicated the department’s position.
“The interdict was never about the contract but business interests,” Gade said.
“We’ve followed all procurement processes, and we will continue working for the poor people of our province.”
On Friday, Gade's spokesperson, Vuyiseka Mboxela, said: “The settlement is that Sita will drop the court application against the department.”
She would not comment further.
Earlier in 2025, just days after Gade confirmed plans to revive the e-learning tablet project for 2025’s matriculants, despite an ongoing investigation into its R580m “irregular” contract, the project was finally rolled out at two schools in the province.
At the time, Gade said he was “tired” of dragged-out court cases and was forging ahead with the project for the current school year.
Daily Dispatch
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