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Three pupils caught boozing say sorry

"Young people cross the line sometimes" - President Jacob Zuma accepts their apology

Three high school pupils caught on camera drinking in the streets near their schools have apologised publicly to President Jacob Zuma, the Department of Education and the community.

They stood in front of teachers, police and pupils at Mandisa Shiceka Secondary School in Kagiso, Krugersdorp, on Friday and apologised for their bad behaviour.

One of them, Thato Zwane, 18, read an apology on their behalf.

"My heartfelt apology goes to the president, the minister of education, district officials, the people of South Africa, our teachers, the police, fellow pupils and our families.

"What we did that day was totally wrong and we regret it. We destroyed the image of the two schools, the community of Kagiso, the department and the country.

"I hope this apology is kindly accepted because we feel bad about what we did," said Zwane.

  • Zuma, the department, the police and the school have accepted the pupils' apology.

"They did the right thing (by apologising) and we hope they will not do it (drinking in public) again," Zuma's spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said yesterday.

"Young people cross the line sometimes. It was a sad picture and it said a lot about family and societal values which are in decay."

The two other Grade 12 pupils, Bonginkosi Jaji and Sabelo Mathenjwa, both aged 18 years, and from Madiba Combined Secondary, have since completed the disciplinary process and will be back at school today.

They were suspended by the school a day after the incident.

  • Zwane single mother, Phindi Mofokeng, stood by listening to her son, tears welling down her eyes.

"I did not expect to see his picture on the front page of a newspaper drinking liquor," said Mofokeng.

She said they were both undergoing counselling and that her son would start a disciplinary process.

  • Nomusa Cembi, spokesperson for the South African Democratic Teachers Union, said they welcomed the apology.

"We feel that a system should be put in place to determine the severity of the problem," Cembi said.

"The pupils should be monitored and evaluated. What happened that day might be a reflection of what is happening in that community."

  • The new commander of Kagiso police station, Brigadier Sipho Ngubane, warned pupils that Kagiso "will never be the same again".

"Rampant public drinking seems to be the norm in Kagiso. We have laws regarding the use of alcohol and those laws must be obeyed," Ngubane said.

"Drugs are also a big problem. Criminals live here in Kagiso, and we need your cooperation in order clean up this township."

Ngubane said four young people were arrested last week for selling drugs.

One of them, a pupil at Madiba, was caught selling dagga to fellow pupils in the school.

  • After accepting the apology, the school's principal, Vathulcattu Joseph, urged the pupils to refrain from doing anything illegal.

"This pupil disgraced the whole school. He even decided not to come to school on that day. Remember that everything you do has consequences," Joseph said.

The three pupils were caught sipping ciders on the day schools reopened two weeks ago.

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