~ Two teachers and an assistant at the Christiana School for the Blind have been suspended after preliminary investigations established that the three absconded from duty on the day a blind Grade 2 pupil drowned in the school’s swimming pool. Education MEC Wendy Matsemela announced the suspensions at a media briefing in Mahikeng yesterday. The three were supposed to have been on duty on September 25 when the incident occurred but indications were that they were not within the school premises. “Based on the outcome of the preliminary investigation which was submitted to the acting department superintendent-general and myself, have taken a decision to place the three employees on precautionary suspension pending a subsequent comprehensive investigation that is being undertaken,” Matsemela said. She said that no further speculation could be made at the moment because the three still had to undergo disciplinary procedures. The MEC, together with senior department officials, was at the school on Tuesday counselling teachers and pupils. The drowning incident followed the death of four pupils in November 2011 after they inhaled smoke from a fire whose causes are yet to be established. “We have put a contractor on site to work on the issue of hostels where these pupils stay and we have also beefed up security details so that at no point would areas like the swimming pool be left unchecked for long,” Matsemela said. The suspension of the three officials has however, raised racial temperatures at the school, with allegations surfacing that black staff members were often made scapegoats for bad things that happened at the institution. The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) said it would defend its members and apportioned blame on the department for ignoring safety warnings raised in the report on the 2011 incident. While the department would not reveal the contents of the report, Matsemela said issues of capacity building and safety precautions raised by Sadtu had been noted and were being implemented. “The message we are sending out here is that officials entrusted with the safety of our children should be faithful and do their duties diligently. “We are not saying the three are guilty because this is just a preliminary report. When the final findings are made, we will make them public,” Matsemela said.
Posted on: Thu, 10 Oct 2013 11:48:14 +0000
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