A video of a schoolgirl klapping another pupil has gone viral on social media prompting the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) to launch an investigation at Phoenix High School in Manenberg.
The video posted by a 61-year-old ouma from Manenberg got people rekking their bekke on Facebook with mense saying the bully should be tackled.
In the short clip, a teen girl wearing a pink doekie is seen walking up to two girls sitting on the floor in a hallway.
“You are in your n***, smaak jy ‘n nog ‘n klap,” she says as she smacks the girl across the face thrice.
The girl, who appears scared, does not respond as the bully continues her verbal attack.
“Jy vattie vir my weer vir ’n n*** nie, hoor jy?” she says as she walks away.
The video which was shared over 2000 times.
The ouma who posted it says she came under attack by the bully’s father who demanded she remove the video but she says she wants to raise awareness.
“I have two granddaughters at the school and I know the children get bullied.
“My one granddaughter who is in Grade 9 was bullied extensively by older girls who made her carry their bags around school or they would hit her,” she says.
“I saw the video on one of our crime chat groups and shared it on my Facebook page.
“One man contacted me saying he was her father and I must remove it and I said, ‘no, why must I?’
“The other girl is not even responding and why did they make the video in the first place?
“I wanted to bring attention to it because my granddaughter had a panic attack and doesn’t want to go to school.”
WCED spokesperson, Bronagh Hammond says they are aware of the video and have launched an investigation.
“The principal was also only notified over the weekend and has begun an investigation.
“This report will be sent to the WCED. The contents will determine a way forward and how we will address the issue,” she says.
Vanessa Adriaanse of the Manenberg Community Police Forum says have arranged a meeting with the principal.
“We are getting involved to see what caused this and hope to speak to the parents of both girls, and there are interventions,” she says.
“The sharing of these videos must stop because are we doing something good?
“Yes, these issues must come to light but we don’t know what led up to it and what happened at home that the children are behaving this way.
“The videos can lead to both the victim and the bully refusing to go to school in the future because their faces are everywhere.”