Cape Town – The disciplinary hearing against under-fire Heathfield High School principal Wesley Neumann is expected to officially start from Thursday.
Six charges, including that of failing to carry out an instruction of the employer, were brought against Neumann by the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) earlier this year.
It’s been alleged that he refused to reopen the school amid the Covid-19 infection peak, and wrote an open letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa and the Cabinet asking for the closure of schools.
The school’s Grade 12s were due to return following the lockdown in June, as per the gazetted date of June 1.
After failing to do so, Neumann was to appear before the disciplinary hearing committee last month.
He approached the Labour Court arguing that a decision regarding the legality of the head of department Brian Schreuder’s contract must be made first, and thus his disciplinary hearing was postponed.
Neumann lost the case at the Labour Court, which dismissed his interdict application.
The young principal appeared on Tuesday at the WCED head office in the CBD. The purpose of this pre-hearing was to establish facts that are common cause, narrow down the issues and address any points in limine (process that addresses a technical legal point).
ANC shadow Education MEC Khalid Sayed and Neumann’s supporters, including pupils, staged a picket outside the education head offices in the Golden Acre.
“It was really bad that Mr Neumann was summoned to a pre-hearing during school time … It is reported that WCED could not produce documentary evidence … and the WCED appointed an unprecedented external senior counsel and lawyers … using our taxpayers’ money,” Sayed said.
Education spokesperson Bronagh Hammond the pre-hearing was finalised on Tuesday with Neumann and his representative.
Details could not be provided. “The disciplinary hearing is scheduled for December 3, 4 and 7.”
Cape Times