Slain deputy principal remembered as a devoted family man

Loved ones are devastated after Sipho Nhlengethwa (51) was shot and killed while attending a meeting related to a case involving one of his colleagues.

The Springs resident was described as a loving family man who cherished his wife and two sons, and a deeply beloved educator.

His son, Mpumelelo, expressed his dad’s passing immensely saddened them, adding his family is not dealing well with the loss.

“My father was a man of honesty, who also enjoyed and had a passion for his role as an educator,” said Mpumelelo.

“He raised my brother, Zinhle and me to be strong; he taught us values and principles in life.”

Mpumelelo added that Nhlengethwa was deeply devoted to his family. When he was around, people could feel his powerful presence, and he instilled discipline even at school.

“Now, our lives have changed forever. I depended and looked up to my father. With time, this will pass and we will find it in our hearts to heal.”

Mpumelelo said when he and Nhlengethwa last spoke; he told him there were issues at school, however; he was hoping he would solve them.

“Unfortunately, my father did not succeed in doing that.”

Mpumelelo recalls the morning before the incident, Nhlengethwa looked unhappy.

“He told me he had not slept and was worried he could not find his laptop. He said he was not concerned much about the laptop, but more of the information in it. I reassured him he would find it.

“Later on, I received a call that he was shot. Someone sent me a photo, which I cannot comprehend how people could circulate photos of him lying in that state.”

Mpumelelo believes the police will find the people responsible for his father’s killing. Nhlengethwa was the deputy principal at Rivoni Secondary School in Daveyton.

He was laid to rest on Saturday. The Gauteng MEC of Education Matome Chiloane, visited Nhlengethwa’s home last Thursday to pay his respect and extend his condolences to Nhlengetwa’s family, colleagues and the entire school community.

“We came to support the family and to pass on our condolences as a department, and to say the loss of Nhlengethwa was not just a loss for them as a family but to us as a department as well.

“He’ is a man who did good for the department. He died nobly while on duty and was a committed educator who embodied what a teacher should be.

Chiloane said the department requested the SAPS provincial commissioner to take over the case so that it could be a high-priority case.

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“This will ensure the police can speed up in finding the perpetrators behind this heinous crime of taking a loved one and, more especially, a dedicated teacher who was helping the department sector in a school loved by all.”

He remarked to the family, “We are here, your pain is our pain, and we felt it immediately as it happened.”

“The manner that Nhlengethwa departed left a painful, bitter taste in our mouth as a department and we are here to support you.”

Ekurhuleni SAPS spokesperson Captain Neldah Sekgobela said the motive behind Nhlengethwa’s shooting is unknown and no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing.

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