‘NO bail’
Furious Ikhandlela Secondary School learners united behind this strong message during the first court appearance of murder accused Sphamandla Mngomezulu (19) at eSikhawini Magistrate’s Court on Friday morning.
Grief-stricken learners packed the courtroom, and waited with anticipation for the fate of their school mate, who brutally stabbed two Grade 12 pupils on Wednesday, killing one.
‘We are here to demand for him not to get bail. He must rot in jail,’ said a Grade 12 learner.
Despite delays in court, pupils waited under the extremely hot Zululand sun, showing their support to victims families.
PHOTO: Wellington Makwakwa
Speaking to the Zululand Observer, pupils also raised serious concerns about missing lessons, especially with all classes suspended until further notice.
‘We have now lost days of school work, and we were supposed to write a test this week but all that has now changed.
‘Other schools are conducting classes while we have to deal with all this,’ said a Grade 12 pupil.
Community support
Learners were supported by various youth groups such as the Youth Desk Support, the Community Policing Forum (CPF) and the ANC Youth League (ANCYL).
‘We came to support these kids and that their safety in schools in made a priority. We must make sure our schools are safe,’ said Ward 21 CPF secretary, Ndumiso Khumalo.
Ward 21 ANCYL chairperson Sbongiseni Masondo also condemned violence in schools, and said ‘other culprits involved in the incident must be identified’.
‘We know there are others involved in this fight and they must be known. We came here with a memorandum with our demands to the magistrate,’ he said.
‘We demand for the suspect not to get bail, and all pupils involved to be de-registered from school records and when the sentence eventually comes, we demand life in prison,
‘These learners are being left behind now and we can’t tolerate such behaviour to ruin the lives our children. As the community, we are working together in ensuring our children are safe and we need relevant structures to also be involved,’ he concluded.
The case was postponed to Tuesday, 28 March and the suspect will remain in custody until his next court appearance.
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