DURBAN: KWAZULU-NATAL Education MEC Kwazi Mshengu said yesterday that an independent panel will investigate the allegations of racism that have been levelled against the staff of Grosvenor Girls’ High School on the Bluff.
Mshengu visited the school yesterday and spoke with the staff, management, parents and pupils.
Members of the EFF also gathered at the school yesterday. The police were called to remove the EFF members after a standoff ensued between the party and the education department.
They party said it had wanted a direct engagement to be held with its members, the MEC of Education and the parents.
Buntu Faku from the EFF said that they wanted action to be taken.
“As EFF we are here to fight against racism, however we were met with arrogance from the school and the department but what we want more than anything is the immediate suspension of the principal,” said Faku.
Mshengu said that it was not the first time that the department has had to intervene after allegations of racism were made.
“I was here in 2019 dealing with a similar issue. There is a mistake we made in 2019. We talked to everyone because we thought that just talking to you learners, SGB (school governing body) and the SMT (school management team) was going to resolve the issue and we left it in that way,” said Mshengu.
He added that the situation appeared to have intensified now.
“We realise now that we should have investigated the issue deeply at that point. That is a mistake we are not going to repeat now. In addressing this issue, we must avoid taking short cuts because taking short cuts will lead us nowhere,” said Mshengu.
The MEC further stated that the department has decided to start a process to look at all of the grievances that have been brought forward.
"As the department, we have commissioned an investigation into the allegations. By the end of this week, the HOD (head of department) must appoint an independent panel with clear terms of reference. They will start with interviews next week and we are going to give them not more than 21 days to come up with findings and recommendations. At the centre of the investigation will be the allegations of racism," said Mshengu.
He added that those who have been affected should come forward to state their case, including members of the SGB, pupils and parents.
Mshengu’s visit to the school comes after pupils held a protest last week over issues of racism and other allegations.
Addressing the meeting, one of the pupils spoke about the issues they were facing.
“The school has an ongoing problem of racism that has been swept under the carpet and ignored for years and an obvious contribution to that is the hair policy in the school's code of conduct. We are told that our black African Afro hair is untidy and does not look suitable with the school uniform. They (also) complain about the braids, yet they have a problem with our natural hair as well,” said the pupil.
She added that this was a direct contradiction of the school’s code of conduct, as pupils of other races were allowed to wear their natural hair to their liking.
A former pupil of the school, Nokwazi Mntungwa, who now has a niece in the school, said that racism was not a new problem.
Mntungwa said that she experienced racism during her academic years.
Thirona Moodley, provincial CEO of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA (Naptosa), said they were pleased that action was being taken to address the allegations.
“Naptosa is concerned with the disruption of teaching and learning at Grosvenor Girls’. Naptosa has a zero-tolerance attitude to allegations of racism. The allegations against the school are serious and warrant a thorough investigation,” said Moodley.
She added that the organisation was pleased that the MEC and head of department visited the school, indicating that they were taking the allegations seriously.
They also appealed to the pupils and parents to allow teaching and learning to resume while the allegations were being investigated as a loss of teaching time would affect the pupils.