North West primary school embroiled in claims and counterclaims of sexual misconduct and incitement

A senior teacher at Kloofwaters Primary near Rustenburg, North West, has been reported to education authorities for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a learner.

The revelations were reported in The Sowetan.

The teacher who was alleged to have a sexual relationship with the learner is known to Daily Maverick but cannot be named because a minor is involved and a criminal case has not been opened against him. Daily Maverick understands that he has not been suspended.

Instead, on 13 May 2024, the acting superintendent-general of the North West Education Department, Marupeng Seshibe, suspended teacher Batseba Moatlhodi, who told Daily Maverick that she had reported the alleged sexual misconduct to the School Governing Body (SGB).

Moatlhodi was suspended on full pay for “inciting learners” to make the allegations against the senior teacher.

Moatlhodi confirmed the incident and her suspension. “I was served with the suspension on the 14th and the department has 30 days to charge me.”

She said her legal representative has not received any charges relating to the suspension.

Daily Maverick contacted the senior teacher, who declined to comment and referred questions to the office of North West Education MEC Viola Motsumi.

North West Education spokesperson Elias Malindi said the department had received a report from the senior teacher, which was written by learners alleging that he had an affair with a learner. 

He said the teacher was approached with the letter by an SGB member.

Later, Malindi said learners indicated that they were forced by Moatlhodi to write the letter.

Malindi said the mother and aunt of one of the learners approached the school.

“They then wrote letters to say their child was not involved in the whole thing,” he said.

Even the learner implicated in the alleged relationship wrote that she was not involved with the senior teacher, Malindi said.

“The two learners explained that the teacher [Moatlhodi] and one parent forced them to lie.”

Moatlhodi has an ongoing disciplinary matter at the school relating to non-performance. A hearing was held on 8 April.

Malindi said the parent who forced the two learners to write the letter later apologised to the senior teacher. 

“The teacher [Moatlhodi] said to her, she must lie. She [the parent] requested an apology for the learners because they were innocent and they were just used by the teacher.”

He said the aunt had claimed that Moatlhodi used learners to fight her battles at the school.

But Moatlhodi has denied that she and a parent instructed the learners to write the letter.

Moatlhodi said she first met the parent in December, who informed her that there was a rumour going around that her colleague was having a relationship with a learner.

“I promised to investigate by observation. My hearing began in April where the same parent agreed to be my witness. The day before the hearing, I visited her to check availability. She then called me the morning of the hearing informing me about the letter, which she handed to me in the presence of the lawyer representing me.”

Malindi said psychologists were called to counsel affected learners.

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