Enock Mpianzi drowning – Never again, vows ‘traumatised’ Lesufi

An emotionally traumatised Gauteng MEC for education Panyaza Lesufi yesterday vowed that incidents such as the drowning of Enock Mpianzi would never happen again.

Yesterday, he suspended the principal of Parktown Boys’ High School and some district officials whom, he said, “have a case to answer in respect of the processing of the application for the trip which should also have required that all the safety aspects of the application are adhered to”.

Lesufi said he was also “emotionally traumatised” on the day Enock died.

“All of us want the truth,” he said.

Lesufi said indemnity forms were to be reviewed. All water activities at schools would now be approved via head office.

He said there was an instruction by Gauteng Premier David Makhura to revise indemnity forms, which seemed to “exonerate” those who did not execute their responsibilities well.

Lesufi said schools and district officials would now be cut out of the picture in an effort to prevent future incidents such as that of Mpianzi, a Grade 8 pupil who drowned at a school camp last week.

“This, we believe, will assist us to ensure we protect our pupils,” said Lesufi.

“We can now confirm that the school has made an application to the district to approve the trip. However, by the time the school embarked on the trip, the district and head office had not approved the trip.

“We have therefore served the headmaster of Parktown Boys’ High School with a letter of precautionary suspension for the investigations to proceed without hindrance.

“In this regard, we have directed that officials who handled the file of application for the trip be served with letters of precautionary suspension as investigations are being carried out.”

A school water polo first team trip to Bloemfontein has been cancelled in honour of Mpianzi.

After a week of formal investigations, Lesufi confirmed that a preliminary report had revealed the school’s trip to the orientation camp where Mpianzi died was unauthorised.

The suspension of the officials was welcomed by Women and Men Against Child Abuse (WMACA), which called for the suspensions earlier this week.

In support of the tough action by the department, WMACA spokesperson Miranda Jordan said: “In addition to the investigation into the professional roles and responsibilities of the district officials and teachers, we are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the inquest which will look into the possible criminal liability if this unnatural death is deemed to be deliberately negligent.”

According to reports, Mpianzi and a group of other pupils had been tasked with building a raft as part of a water activity shortly after they arrived at the Nyati Bush and River Break Lodge in the North West.

While sailing their raft along the Crocodile River, the raft overturned and left boys scrambling for safety. Mpianzi had not made it back onto the raft and drowned.

Lesufi said the school governing body (SGB) of the school would also not escape scrutiny.

“We will be guided by parents of the school on the kind of action we should take,” he said.

He added that although no teacher had yet been suspended, the department was working hard to get more information about whether the teachers were working under the SGB or the department, and what their roles and actions were during the trips.

Lesufi said this was because the department had limited disciplinary power when it came to teachers hired by the SGB.

The department was cautious about charging the teachers as a collective and he stressed the importance of dealing with them individually.

– jenniffero@citizen.co.za

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