Latest news with #KZNDepartmentofEducation
IOL News
22-05-2025
- IOL News
KZN man who allegedly raped six Nkandla school pupils, arrested with community's help
A KwaZulu-Natal man has been arrested for the alleged rape of six pupils from a Nkandla high school. Image: Supplied A KwaZulu-Natal man accused of raping six pupils from an Nkandla high school has been arrested with the help of the community. KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Education, Sipho Hlomuka, welcomed the arrest. The suspect was apprehended in Durban on May 20 following a joint effort by law enforcement, community members, and other key stakeholders. According to the KZN Department of Education, the suspect allegedly raped six learners. 'This arrest demonstrates what is possible when communities and stakeholders work together. We remain deeply concerned about the safety of our learners, and this horrific incident has shaken us all. However, the unity shown in tracking down the alleged perpetrator gives us hope that such evil will not go unchallenged,' said Hlomuka. He commended the swift and coordinated response by the police, the school governing body, parents, and local residents who collaborated in ensuring the suspect was located and brought into custody. In response to the trauma experienced by the victims, the Department of Education has deployed psychologists to provide immediate and ongoing psychosocial support to the affected learners and their families. The MEC was expected to visit the school on Thursday to meet with the affected families and the school's leadership. "Our priority is to support the learners through this extremely difficult time and ensure their wellbeing is not compromised further,' Hlomuka added. KZN Premier Thami Ntuli also praised the arrest, highlighting the critical role played by the Bhekisizwe Taxi Association in Nkandla and the broader community in tracking down and detaining the suspect. 'I applaud the courage of those who spoke out, the determination of our law enforcement officers, and the resilience of the Bizimali community,' said Premier Ntuli. Ntuli reaffirmed the provincial government's zero-tolerance stance on gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF), stressing that no one, woman, child, or vulnerable person should live in fear. 'Our communities must become safe spaces, and the wheels of justice must turn swiftly and decisively,' he said. He also called for the strengthening of community policing forums, survivor support systems, and for more men to actively stand against abuse. The premier further acknowledged progress in two other GBV-related cases in the province. He welcomed developments in the case of Ayabonga Mjilo, which has been postponed to June 23 and is due to be transferred to the high court. He called for the harshest sentence if the accused is convicted. In the Ndwedwe case, Ntuli condemned the kidnapping and repeated rape of a woman by her former partner and commended the police for the swift arrest of the suspect. 'Justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done. We owe it to survivors to ensure they are heard, supported, and protected,' Ntuli said. THE MERCURY
IOL News
06-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
KwaZulu-Natal's Education Department grapples with R250 million debt crisis
Sadtu provincial secretary Nomarashiya Caluza has raised the union's concern about the financial state of the KZN Department of Education. Image: Indepenent Newspapers Archives A financial report has laid bare the deepening financial crises faced by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, painting a picture of an entity drowning in debt. The department owes close to R250 million to the eThekwini Municipality for water delivered by water tankers, as detailed in the financial report released by the municipality last week. This comes as the department is already battling to service a debt owed by Section 21 schools to the municipality for services. It was not immediately clear over what period the debt has been accumulated, but the report covers the latest period from January to March and details all debts owed to the municipality, including by consumers, business, and government. The financial state of the department is a concern to political parties and the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), which claims that the department has collapsed financially. KZN Education faced serious budget cuts over the past few years and has revealed that it is struggling to meet its obligations. It has emerged that it has not paid all the suppliers of the school nutrition programme and missed salary payments to Grade R teachers, who were expected to be paid late last week. The financial report stated, 'An amount of R250 million is owed by the Department of Education for the supply of water tankers.' The City's eThekwini Water Services and the Department of Education have established that the water was supplied without a valid Service Level Agreement (SLA) in place; but the issue of the accumulated debt has not been resolved. Discussions are ongoing between the water service and the department on how to resolve the debt issue. The report also indicated that the department's Section 21 schools are struggling to keep up with their accounts, which have fallen into arrears despite a payment arrangement being in place. 'After engagements with the Department of Education, in May 2024, a payment arrangement was concluded for an amount of R169.1m, which was the debt owed by 521 schools at the time. The arrangement was that the department would pay this amount in equal instalments of R11m over 13 months after the initial down payment of R17m was made. The Department of Education has paid as per the agreement, with the last instalment for March still to be received. 'It should be noted that although an arrangement was reached with the Department of Education in May last year, the debt for 521 schools has continued to escalate due to schools not paying their current charges, which have now escalated into arrears,' said the report. The DA spokesperson on Education, Sakhile Mngadi, expressed alarm at the deepening financial implosion within the province's department. He said a crisis is now threatening the well-being of millions of pupils and the constitutional viability of KZN's education system. 'This is no longer just a financial issue. It is a humanitarian and constitutional crisis, born out of poor leadership and a toxic culture of evasion and spin. Every day that passes without urgent intervention places more children at risk, undermines their right to education, and erodes the public's faith in government,' he said. Sadtu provincial secretary Nomarashiya Caluza said the department has collapsed. 'As we speak, some Grade R practitioners have not been paid. The department is struggling to pay service providers for school nutrition programmes, acting personnel have not received acting allowances, and some officials cannot attend important workshops. Some service providers that assisted with stationery at the beginning of the year have not been paid. "Schools have not received their full basic allocation for 2024. What else do we need to see to say that the department has collapsed?' she asked. Addressing the issue of unpaid school nutrition service providers, the department said it is addressing this and blamed a system glitch for the delay in payment. 'We acknowledge the concerns raised by our valued service providers and wish to assure them that the department is doing everything possible to resolve the technical glitches affecting payment processes. The problem has nothing to do with the financial difficulties of the department, as the NSNP is paid from the grant allocation. We remain committed to transparency, timely communication, and the uninterrupted provision of meals to our pupils across the province,' it said. Speaking on the issue of the debt, Education Department spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said: 'We are in agreement with them (municipality) as to how this is being addressed. We hold meetings with them and discuss these issues.' THE MERCURY
IOL News
05-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Payment issues resolved for KZN's National School Nutrition Programme service providers
KZN Department of Education updates payment status for National School Nutrition Programme service providers. Image: Independent Newpapers Archives The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education has updated the status of payments to National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) service providers following alleged food shortages due to payment issues. In a statement, the KZN department said as of April 24, 2025, 78% of payments (R161 million out of R205 million) were properly handled. Attempts to complete remaining payments on April 25 and May 2 failed owing to technical issues related to the introduction of BAS Version 6, an upgrade from BAS Version 5. The National Treasury's IT staff is working around the clock to fix system faults. The payment run is reportedly set for Monday, May 5, and all unpaid service providers will get reimbursements on May 8. The department said that it maintains complete records of all unpaid service providers. These lists have been shared with district offices to keep affected service providers aware and prevent interruptions in meals for learners.
IOL News
27-04-2025
- IOL News
Teacher 'sent' explicit messages to pupil (12) on TikTok
Parents and community members staged a protest outside Pitlochry Primary School in Westville after allegations of child grooming by a teacher emerged recently. A PRIMARY school teacher is facing charges of child grooming after he allegedly sent explicit messages to a 12-year-old pupil on TikTok. Muzi Mahlambi, spokesperson for the KZN Department of Education, confirmed on Tuesday that the teacher was previously involved in a similar incident at another school and had been suspended. Mahlambi said the current matter had been reported to the principal on April 5. 'It was also reported to the circuit manager on the same day, who then instituted an investigation. The findings and recommendations are now on the desk of the department's head, for him to apply his mind and take the appropriate actions. The department is very disappointed and frowns at such alleged behaviour by teachers in our schools.' On Tuesday morning, parents and concerned community members gathered outside Pitlochry Primary School in Westville, demanding answers - including why the teacher had not been arrested to date. Colonel Robert Netshiunda, a provincial police spokesperson, confirmed Sydenham SAPS was investigating a case of child grooming, following reports that a man had allegedly sent explicit messages to a 12-year-old girl. Some of the parents, who spoke to the POST, said they were 'horrified' after hearing about the alleged incident on the television news on Monday night. It was alleged that the teacher had sent messages to the Grade 7 pupil on the social media platform, TikTok, in early April. In the message, he allegedly asked her, 'Do you use one finger or two?', followed by 'I asked which finger you use on yourself…'. In her alleged response, the pupil said: 'You're so dirty minded. I don't use any finger.' The teacher allegedly went on to say that she should not tell anyone about the messages. "Listen, please promise me you won't tell anybody, and I mean NOBODY that you chat to me,' the message read. After hearing the allegations, the parents demanded that the teacher not return to school on Tuesday. They called for his permanent removal from the school and if found guilty, from the education sector. Veran Jankee, who has two children at the school - in grades 5 and 7 - said they had been informed that the education department had issued a directive that the teacher not attend school on Tuesday. 'They have termed it as a precautionary removal. However, while investigations are ongoing and I don't want to prejudge, there has been talks that this was not the first such incident with him. It has been alleged this also occurred when he taught at other schools. However, if the allegations are found to be true then he should be removed from the education system and not have access to any child. 'As a parent, all we want is for our children to be safe, especially when they are at school. We don't need such 'predators' using the opportunity of school to approach our children. Thankfully, the parent of the alleged victim noticed a change in her behaviour and started digging further. She notified the school. If she was not vigilant, who knows how long or far this would have gone,' he said. Nerusha Maharaj, the mother of a Grade 5 male pupil, said she had found out about the alleged incident from watching the news. 'While we understand that the school has to follow protocols, we are the parents and have every right to know. It is sad and frustrating that this happened weeks ago but we had to hear about it on the news. Furthermore, he was moved from teaching to doing admin work. But he was still on the premises, so how was that protecting the children? The education department needs to move faster when dealing with such issues and be more transparent as this is our children's lives that are being compromised.' Neema Keshav, the mother of a Grade 4 female pupil, said it was scary to hear about such allegations at the school. 'We send our children to school so they can have a brighter future, but this causes a great darkness over that dream. It is a horrible feeling as a parent as you now have to ask your child if anyone, be it a teacher or a fellow pupil had 'touched or misbehaved with them'. 'You also have to explain to them why you are asking these questions. It is difficult. We should not have to be asking our children these questions. However, we didn't expect this at the school and we hope that it will be dealt with properly,' she said. Dinesh Ramsunder, whose child is in Grade 5 said: 'To have an alleged sexual perpetrator in the same school as your child is of great concern. But I am now standing up, not only for my child, but for all and calling on the education department to deal with this swiftly. In addition, there is a case that has been opened and the investigation should not be dragged out.' Alicia Kissoon, ward 23 councillor, said she had been approached by several concerned parents. She, together with parent representatives engaged with the school management to provide feedback to those present at the protest. 'While I am not the councillor for the ward in which the incident occurred, several of the parents who were at the protest, are residents of my ward. These parents are deeply distressed by the serious allegations involving a senior teacher and have called for greater transparency and accountability. The protest reflects a wider outcry for urgent intervention to ensure pupils safety. 'While I cannot comment on the specifics of the case to safeguard the privacy of the minor involved, it is imperative that this issue be addressed with the seriousness and urgency it warrants. The education department must also communicate clearly and act decisively to address the matter with sensitivity and integrity,' she said. Thirona Moodley, the chief executive officer of the National Professional Teachers' Organisation of SA (Naptosa) in KZN, said they condemned any act of sexual grooming or advances of a sexual nature between a teacher and pupil. 'Teachers stand in for parents while pupils are at school. They are supposed to protect pupils and not use their positions to exploit them. 'However, we can't be judge and jury before these allegations are tested. In addition, the education department must investigate and report their findings to all concerned.' THE POST
