Pupil - aged 24 - who pulled his teacher out of her car and tried to drive over her, is jailed

Sadtu welcomes jail term meted out to KZN pupil

04 December 2019 - 10:31 By Naledi Shange
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The teachers' union Sadtu welcomed the 17-year jail term handed to a KZN pupil who tried to kill his teacher.
The teachers' union Sadtu welcomed the 17-year jail term handed to a KZN pupil who tried to kill his teacher.
Image: Supplied

A heavy jail sentence has been meted out to a KwaZulu-Natal pupil who assaulted and tried to run down his teacher earlier this year, the SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) announced on Wednesday.

According to the union, the 24-year-old pupil was sentenced to 17 years behind bars by the Pietermaritzburg magistrate's court last week.

“This learner assaulted his unsuspecting female teacher by dragging her out of her car and attempted to drive the car over her in August 2019. This gruesome and inhumane incident happened in full view of some learners in the village of iMpendle at Chibelihle Combined School,” said Sadtu’s provincial secretary, Nomarashiya Caluza, in a statement.

“He is unfit to be in the same environment with law-abiding citizens,” Caluza added.

The union said it was wrong for the pupil to have been allowed into the school in the first place, adding that he should have been enrolled in a learning institute suitable for his age.

It hoped that the sentence would send a stern message to other pupils who abused teachers.

“The magistrate has sent a strong and unambiguous message that violence in schools, particularly against the most vulnerable and defenceless sections of our society, should not be tolerated. Violence in schools destabilises provision of quality education, compromises sound educational outcomes and disrupts the future of many learners,” Caluza said.

The union called on the education department to invest more resources in the safety and security of pupils and teachers.

The KwaZulu-Natal education department welcomed the sentence.

“We are saying good riddance to him. The school and community is safer without him,” said spokesperson Kwazi Mthethwa.

He said the pupil was found guilty of car hijacking, assault and attempted murder.

Mthethwa said the pupil should have known better because of his age. "He should have been in a better position to make a decision and be a role model to other pupils.

“Whether a person is three years old or 10, what matters is that they behave accordingly when they are in the schooling environment,” he added.


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