Cape Town - A group of parents and members of the Luleka Primary School Governing Body (SGB) in Harare, Khayelitsha, picketed outside the provincial Education Department offices calling for the Education MEC to remove their “problematic” school principal.
The SGB accuses the principal of corruption and nepotism, saying he disregards the SGB governance at the school.
SGB chairperson Mxoliseni Zwayi said there was no transparency on how the recruitment processes and how the school monies were spent.
“The SGB is responsible for the recruitment of the contract teachers but the principal gets his own people without an interview and selection process and when we question these things, we are labelled as opportunistic. We are only called when we have to solve problems we never created.
“This time we were called by the parents after he recruited assistant teachers and their documents were sent back by the department as they had no SGB signatures and we knew that this was the last straw,” said Zwayi.
He said there were also monies that were spent on maintaining the school, however, the school infrastructure was deteriorating regardless. He said they wanted a principal that would work with the SGB and the community in building the school.
Community leader Lonwabo Mqina said the principal had failed to consult the SGB on the daily running of the school since 2013.
“We took a decision as the community and the SGB for him to be removed from the school over a number of things, including undermining the governance of the school. He takes decisions without the SGB, using one SGB member who is only an additional member and not a treasurer or a chairperson to sign monies without the SGB knowledge.
“He has been recycling teachers and has turned the school into an old age home, employing teachers that have long retired to teach our children while he overlooks young and experienced teachers that have the necessary skills,” he said.
Mqina said they had consulted the department at regional level from 2013 but found no joy in its responses.
“If the department does not deploy him, we will remove him ourselves,” he said.
Education MEC Debbie Schäfer’s spokesperson Kerry Mauchline said: “The protesters did arrive at the minister’s office, to raise concerns about the principal of their school. A meeting between the leadership of the group, Mr Meyer, and the district director, will take place next week.”
Mauchline said the principal will temporarily report to the district office while the matter was being investigated.
Cape Argus