THE issue of safety around students needs to be urgently addressed, says DA PR Councillor Sharmaine Sewshanker, following two incidents in Berea last week.
On Thursday, 15-year-old Moyeni Walter was shot in Warwick Avenue and died in hospital on Friday. Reports claimed that the family believed Moyeni was killed because he refused to give another boy money, and was standing up to bullying.
Two Sastri College pupils, aged 14 and 15, were arrested by Berea SAPS on Friday and have appeared in juvenile court at the Durban Magistrate’s Court on charges of murder.
The two boys appeared on Monday where their preliminary inquiry was rolled over to Tuesday. The inquiry was to investigate the facts of the case, how the case must proceed and the criminal capacity of the minors.
Kwazi Mshengu, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for education, said the learners had been suspended. He said although the incident had not taken place within the school premises, the Department still needed to intervene.
The school governing body conveyed its condolences to the family and friends of the learner. Moyeni will be laid to rest in his home country, Zimbabwe.
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The shooting came days after Sandile Ndlovu, a first year industrial engineering student at Durban University of Technology was brutally stabbed in a lecture room at Steve Biko Campus. He was rushed to hospital with severe head injuries and remains in ICU.
Commenting on these tragic incidents, Councillor Sewshanker said the issue of safety of students needed to be urgently addressed. “Another bright young learner from Sastri College has died, with this tragedy coming two days after the stabbing of a DUT student in the campus lecture hall. What is more distressing is that the incidents took place meters away from each other,” she said.
Sewshanker questioned how the firearm passed through the security system at the school. “Is there enough that is being done to protect our children while they attend schools and campuses? I have a daughter at DUT and am terrified for her safety at the institute. Many parents are freaked out and have openly voiced their fear on social media. There is an overwhelming sense of insecurity amongst parents. It can’t be correct that we live in constant fear daily,” she said.
Sewshanker said she would be writing to the DA MPL Imraan Keeka who is responsible for education in the legislature, to urgently address the issue relating to safety around children at learning institutions, in the hopes that the province will provide some solutions.
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