Tragic start to Ndlozi’s former high school after alleged arson and suicide attempt
The EFF spokesperson described the incident as a deliberate act of sabotage.
A fire breaks out at Khutlo-Tharo Secondary. Image: Twitter/@lesufi
The police are on the hunt for suspected arsonists after a fire broke out at EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi’s former high school Khutlo Tharo Secondary School in Sebokeng on Wednesday morning.
Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela said three schools were burned down in the same area in less than three weeks. As a result, police have put together a team of seasoned detectives to investigate all break-ins.
Police were at the scene combing for clues.
He said all members of staff at the secondary school were suspects and that police called on community members to provide any information which could lead to the arrest of the culprits.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura, Ndlozi, Gauteng education MEC Panyaza Lesufi and a fleet of teachers were at the school on Wednesday morning to assess the damage.
Premier @David_Makhura, MEC @Lesufi & MEC @TasneemMotara arriving at Khutlo Tharo Secondary School, following the burning of the school in the early hours of this morning. Khutlo-Tharo Secondary is the 3rd school in the area torched since December with 17 break-ins. pic.twitter.com/9Nu74vDdlp
— Gauteng ANC #VoteANC (@GautengANC) January 15, 2020
While the school has put forward proactive measures such as the smart delivery of stationery, Lesufi said priceless things such as school awards, computers, furniture, and school records have been damaged.
Wednesday’s incident is reportedly the 17th break-in at the school since August last year.
It’s understood that the admin block was destroyed by the fire.
The department of education is currently awaiting police to finish investigations at the scene in order to quantify the total value of the damage after spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga estimated the damage at around R3 million.
Mhlanga said a case was opened with police who suspected arson.
The secondary school’s administration block was one of the buildings severely destroyed by the blaze.
Ndlozi described the incident as a deliberate act of sabotage to terrorise education.
“It’s literally people not stealing anything. There may have been seventeen incidents of theft, but the superficial reason was that these people wanted to deliberately disrupt the starting of normal resumption of education (sic).”
It is understood that school pupils had to wait outside the school on Wednesday morning and have missed their first day of school.
https://twitter.com/KatSekhotho/status/1217375931557433345?s=20
The school got off to a challenging start this year after a grade 10 pupil allegedly attempted suicide after failing her exams in 2019 during Wednesday’s morning rush.
The 17-year-old reportedly consumed a poisonous substance and collapsed and was then taken to a local hospital.
WATCH: @EDUCATIONGP spokesperson @Steve_Mabona has confirmed that a 17-year-old girl attempted suicide at Khutlo-Tharo Secondary School. #Back2SchoolGP pic.twitter.com/Wqj56q4jLA
— POWER987News (@POWER987News) January 15, 2020
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