Pretoria - There was huge disappointment on the faces of parents and MEC for Education Panyaza Lesufi as the teacher accused of sexually assaulting 24 pupils at Valhalla Primary School was granted R8000 bail.
The Pretoria Magistrate's Court said it was in the interest of justice that the 55-year-old Afrikaans teacher is released on bail despite huge objections from society.
The accused allegedly touched pupils inappropriately from last year June, but he was only reported to the police this January when pupils told metro police officers about his alleged behavior.
The officers were at the school to teach pupils about safety, their rights and how to spot harassment.
MEC Lesufi said he was very disappointed that the educator was granted bail for such serious allegations.
MEC Panyaza Lesufi speaks about plans for the newly proposed and strengthened vetting system for teachers. Video: James Mahlokwane
However, he said the Department of Education had confidence in the justice system and believed a conviction was possible.
Parents walked out of court saying the bail verdict was unfair, considering what their children went through.
They said they could not believe he was granted bail while their children were still traumatised by what happened.
Lesufi said the department was in the process of strengthening its vetting process to prevent incidents of this nature.