'KEER DIE MENEER'

The reinstatement of a teacher, accused of raping his own minor daughter, at a Mitchells Plain high school has sparked outrage.

Gender-based violence organisations and the Community Policing Forum held a protest outside the school where he works last Friday.

The teacher, who cannot be identified because he is the biological father of the victim who is now 15 years old and was seven when the alleged sexual assaults started in 2017 and lasted until 2021, has been reinstated despite his ongoing criminal trial and being out on bail.

He is currently making appearances at the Blue Downs Magistrates Court. 

According to court papers, the teacher was granted bail of R1 000 in 2022 following his arrest when the case was registered with police in December 2021 by his estranged wife after his daughter broke her silence about the alleged sex attacks.

Separately, the teacher was found not guilty last month following a year-long Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) inquiry into two charges of sexual assault of a learner from another school and misconduct under the Labour Relations Act.

He was suspended in April 2024 when the ELRC inquiry began. 

Bernice Loxton of the ELRC shared the report and findings of the arbitration and inquiry with the Cape Argus.

According to the document, the ELRC held sittings between April 2024 and March 2025. 

The mother reported the allegations in November 2023 to the ELRC, leading to his suspension in April 2024. A parallel criminal case is ongoing.

Despite the complainant and mother's testimony, the arbitrator found the teacher not guilty on the balance of probabilities, citing insufficient evidence to link him to the alleged abuse, even with expert testimony suggesting possible sexual abuse.

Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond also confirmed the teacher was found not guilty in the arbitration matter.

The Cape Argus also approached the victim’s mother, who said she could not comment due to being a teacher herself.

Caroline Peters of the Callas Foundation, which advocates for the rights of women and children and provides psychosocial support, said they were deeply concerned that the teacher was placed back inside a classroom.

Peters, together with the Mitchell’s Plain CPF, the Mitchell’s Plain United Residents Association (MURA) and community members, held a protest outside the school grounds on Friday.

She said: “The decision to reinstate an educator accused of sexual abuse while the criminal trial is still pending is deeply irresponsible and retraumatising, not only for the survivor and her family but for the broader school community.

“It sends a harmful message that allegations of this magnitude can be sidelined. 

Linda Jones of the Mitchells Plain CPF and MURA adds: 

“Our thinking would be that the department of education had to wait until the court of law found him innocent

“We call for the  immediate suspension of this alleged perpetrator.

“And also that action be taken against whoever gave the greenlight on his reinstatement."