The department's spokesperson, Howard Ndaba, says they are investigating why the educator assistants have not been paid for two months.

Ndaba says they are working around the clock to make sure that the assistants are paid by end of business on Thursday.

“We have already started with the investigation to make sure what exactly happened because as a department, we have allocated those funds for the payment of this and that is why we are saying we don’t know what happened. We are investigating and we will make sure that whoever is involved will face the full might of the law of the department,” says Ndaba.

Earlier this year, the Congress of the People (COPE) called on the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, and the police to urgently investigate the alleged fraud by the management of Ilanga Secondary School in Witbank, in Mpumalanga.

It is alleged the school has the tendency to effect illegal deductions on stipends paid to 15 of its assistant educators. Those raising concerns about the suspicious deductions are allegedly threatened with dismissal and termination of their contracts.

SABC News