Welkom Secondary School teacher get the boot for sexual assault

A Welkom Secondary School educator has been dismissed after being found guilty for sexual assaulting a school pupil, the Free State education department confirmed.

The incident emanates from November 2018, where the teacher had hugged the learner, grabbed her hard and kissed [her] with [an] open mouth twice on her lips during school hours.

The case which has been on-going, was concluded yesterday, after Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) took a decision to expel the educator after he pleaded guilty to charges of sexual assault.

On Monday, March 7 a physical science teacher learnt his fate as he was shown the door.

According to the South African Council of Educators’ code of professional ethics, teachers cannot have sexual relations with school pupils.

Kasi Voice News reached out to Free State education department’s spokesperson Howard Ndaba, who said the department had proffered a charge of sexual assault against the educator.

Lambasting the educator for his actions, the Free State Department of Education said the teacher failed to provide parental care and set an example as an educator.

The department further entailed that the educator had violated professional conduct as the educator.

“Still, because he had shown remorse by pleading guilty to the charge, an appropriate sanction would be a final written warning and three months suspension from work without pay,” the department said.

The ELRC commissioner Khuduga Tlale said the expelled educator’s conduct amounted to abuse of a sexual nature committed against a pupil and, therefore, he should be summarily dismissed.

“It is important to note that sexual assault on a learner is a standard that should not be breached and that the conduct was unwelcome and unwarranted,” Tlale told News24.