NTANDO XIMBA: The legal system is failing learners, prison is not enough. These teachers should not be allowed to raise nor teach children. They must lose their qualifications and all benefits such as their pension funds.
Sexual assault of school children by teachers and school employees has been a trending topic recently. A school in Soweto recently fired a 54-year-old man for allegedly sexually assaulted 87 children.
A former water polo assistant coach at Parktown Boys High School recently appeared in the South Gauteng High Court on 160 counts ranging from attempted murder, exposure to child pornography and grooming.
We asked the people of Joburg what they think should happen to teachers and school employees who have been found guilty of committing such crimes.
Here’s what they had to say:
MARCCIA CHIRARAMIRE: Nobody deserves to be sexually assaulted as it affects them emotionally, physically and mentally. These teachers can’t be allowed to be part of our society and they must face life imprisonment.
MLUNGISI MAHLANGU: We expect teachers to treat our children as their own and this is what happens. They need to be locked up forever.
PHUMZILE MAKHATHINI: Teachers need to go through rigorous training and assessment to ensure they do not have these demons within them. Jail time, loss of their benefits and maybe even the death sentence – they must be dealt with accordingly.
JAGRUTI NAGAR: These teachers must be removed from any environment that includes children, sent to prison and receive some sort of counselling while in prison.
JOSHUA DE VILLERS: Criminal charges need to be instated and they must be barred from teaching ever again.
BRENDON TING CHANG: They must lose their jobs and face life imprisonment.
SAMUEL MAHLANGU: They need to face the same consequence as people convicted of statutory rape as the prey on the young and vulnerable.
DANIEL TEXIERA: More needs to be done to uncover these cases because I feel like a lot of these schools, especially private schools, hide this information. Such teachers must face the law and be sent to jail for as long as possible.
RHANDZU NDHLOVU: They must lose their qualifications, benefits and be sent to prison. For extreme cases such as raping a school child, the death penalty must be reintroduced and they must face that.
TYRA HOLMES: Investigations need be held to figure out how many more children have been sexually assaulted and why it went on for so long without anyone knowing. Those found guilty must be fired from their jobs and sent to prison for life.
