Pro-Israel post causes Centurion teacher havoc

A pro-Israeli post on WhatsApp has landed a Centurion teacher in hot water, causing the local Muslim community to call for the teacher to step down.

Last month, Sudesh Mooloo was allegedly suspended from his duties as an Afrikaans and history teacher at Laudium Secondary School when his “I am not anti-Palestine, but anti-Hamas, I stand with Israel” status stirred up a storm on 18 May.

Mooloo has since been labelled as the teacher who hates Muslims by upset people in the Laudium community, who demanded he be held accountable for the post.

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The Laudium Sun newspaper reported that the community has called for Mooloo to resign because “he could influence the youth with incorrect values”.

Mooloo, who has been at home for almost four weeks, has been a teacher for 25 years and is the third generation in his family to attend Laudium Secondary School.

Mooloo said he did not want to talk about the incident for fear of either being targeted, or sparking more fury in the community.

A close family member, who agreed to speak anonymously also in fear of being targeted for being related to Mooloo, said he and his wife were taking strain since the incident.

“They are starting to worry about their finances because they don’t know if his wife’s salary will cover all the expenses,” the family member said.

She added that the family was worried that their child, who is at another school in Laudium, would be targeted.

Steve Mabona, spokesperson for the Gauteng department of education, said the department would like to make it clear that it did not condone discrimination based on gender, political or religious affiliation, or race – in line with the South African constitution.

“We, therefore, take the allegations against Laudium Secondary School in a very serious light,” Mabona said. Mabona added that the district had engaged the school regarding the veracity of the allegations against the teacher.

“The school responded that the [teacher] had taken sick leave,” Mabona said, adding that his contract had not been terminated.

The school, however, could not confirm the department’s claims and principal Renita Singh refused to comment.