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5 November 2008

KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) MEC for Education Ms Ina Cronjé and the education head Dr Cassius Lubisi want to condemn in the strongest possible terms the display of violence that saw matric exams being disrupted and department officials getting injured at Ubuhlebomzinyathi High School at Amajuba district yesterday. Three departmental officials sustained injuries when learners threw stones at them yesterday when they walked into the school premises to reinstate the principal who had been displaced.

The department had followed all the necessary and legal procedures in investigating the allegations of mismanagement and witchcraft practice that were levelled against the school principal. The school principal was displaced to allow for the investigation to be conducted. The findings of the investigation found no wrong doing to warrant the removal of the principal from the school. A meeting was held with the school governing body on Saturday to report that the school principal will be reinstated following the outcome of the investigation.

The MEC wants to state emphatically and unequivocally that there is no tolerance and no room for such acts of thuggery and vandalism in the department, "We will come down hard on anyone and everyone involved and we will work with police to ensure that all involved will face the full might of the law," said the MEC.

Meanwhile, all Grade 12 learners have been bussed to Amajuba education district office hall in Lennoxton so that they continue writing their examination without any disruptions. The focus of the department now is on ensuring that Grade 12 learners at Ubuhlebomzinyathi write and finish their final examination smoothly.

Issued by: Department of Education, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
5 November 2008