A grade 12 learner who has been sitting at home for over three weeks after being assaulted by another learner and his father will appear in court this morning. The learner's alleged attacker opened a counter charge of assault against Philasande Mthethwa (17).
Philasandwe (17) a grade 12 learner at Glenvista Secondary, south of Johannesburg, allegedly got into a fight with a grade 8 learner after he asked the grade 8 to vape far from him during break. Philasande's father, Xolani Mthethwa, said that his son suffered some injuries after he was attacked by the grade 8 learner, his father and his cronies. Philasande was allegedly told by the school to stay home for his own safety after his attackers were arrested and released on bail. Mthethwa said last week that it was outrageous that his son is missing on classes when his attacker was going to school freely. "I want justice for my son and for him to go back to school," the father said.
Mthethwa told ZiMoja that they were shocked to learn from the police that his son's alleged attacker had opened a counter assault charge against him. He said it was disturbing that his son who is a victim was being victimised. "There is no justice in what is happening, my son will have a criminal record for something he never did. What is more concerning is that there was a teacher who witnessed my son being beaten up and she did not do or say anything," he added.
According to Mthethwa, the School Governing Body (SGB) and the principal do not want to meet with him. "I have tried to engage with the parents and the school management but all my efforts are in vain. I can't even take him out of that school because I have paid fees for the year. What will happen to my money? I know they will never refund me so this needs to be resolved," he said. Gauteng Department of Education spokesperson Steven Mabena failed to comment on the issue of Philasande since lTuesday. Questions were emailed and sent on WhatsApp but he ignored them despite being shown the pictures of Philasande's bruises.
