It comes days after a 51-year-old Melmoth teacher was arrested for allegedly raping and impregnating a 13-year-old girl at Sinqobile High School. Questions have been raised as to how men like these are making their way into the school system? KZN Education MEC Kwazi Mshengu wants paedophiles booted out immediately.
“We’ll also be engaging with other relevant authorities around the register of sexual offenders but most of them they will come into the school system with clean records,” said Mshengu.
“Then they start to be perpetrators after being employed. I have not been advised of any case where we blatantly recruited or employed an offender. If you know that you have been involved in sexual relations with learners and if you are tempted to even get into further relations with learners we are coming for you as a department.
“We don’t have spaces for paedophiles in our schools. But we also saying to parents, partner with us, as we deal with these cases we must also open criminal charges so we send a clear message that our young learners, our young girls, are not subjects of abuse.” The investigations into both cases are expected to be finalised within 60 days.