Cape Town - The rain couldn’t stop supporters of suspended South Peninsula High School principal Brian Isaacs from coming into the city centre on Tuesday to call on Western Cape Education MEC Debbie Schafer to reinstate him immediately.
Isaacs has been suspended since March and the presiding officers in two separate disciplinary hearings have recommended he be dismissed.
He is fighting both decisions and Schafer is considering his appeals.
At the first hearing he was found guilty of two charges of disrespect or abusive or insolent behaviour towards officials and of giving false statements concerning his employer, in terms of the Employment of Educators’ Act.
The officer in the second hearing found Isaacs guilty of four charges, including assaulting a pupil; improper conduct by calling pupils “scum”; refusing to allow pupils to return to class for eight days and failure to carry out a lawful instruction to ensure pupils return to class.
Tuesday’s protest, which was held outside the offices of the Western Cape Education Department, was attended by former principals, education activists, pupils and other supporters of Isaacs.
“Down with victimisation, down with the WCED,” they chanted.
A memorandum listing their grievances was handed over to Schafer’s spokeswoman, Jessica Shelver.
“You have treated our school community with contempt; we are now demanding the immediate reinstatement of our principal, Brian Isaacs; the lifting of his suspension without substantive reasons since March 4, 2016 and the dropping of the vexatious disciplinary hearings against him,” it stated. Please be informed that you are invoking our anger as a community. You have failed us as a community.”
The group called for an urgent meeting between education authorities and the school governing body and the South Peninsula Support Committee.
A letter from pupils, addressed to Schafer, was read out by pupil, Wisaal Charles. The letter said Isaacs’s suspension from the school had left a void and the pupils appealed to the department “to make a responsible call on the matter”.
“Mr Isaacs is left with less than three years before he exits the schooling system. Given his lifetime contribution he deserves to exit the system with dignity. WCED and the country owe him that.”
Shelver said the content of the memorandum would be brought to Schafer’s attention.
Isaacs, who attended the protest, said he was overwhelmed by the support.
Cape Argus