Alfred Moselakgomo

Alfred Moselakgomo

An Mpumalanga high school teacher faces expulsion after she allegedly accused a pupil, in front of her classmates, of having Aids.

This incident came to light when a 22-year-old pupil at ZB Kunene High School in KaNyamazane reported the matter to local circuit manager Alfred Myanga.

A Grade 11 pupil, Sthebile Mtsweni (not her real name) told Myanga about her ordeal after suffering a barrage of accusations from her teacher, whose name is known to Sowetan.

The pupil said she was sitting in a front row seat when her teacher barred her from it, fearing that she might infect her with the disease.

Education authorities confirmed the incident and said an investigation was under way to find out under what circumstances the teacher had uttered those words.

"Our findings in this probe will determine which penalty should be handed to the teacher if she is found guilty," departmental spokesman Jasper Zwane said.

The teacher in question could not be reached for comment.

Last year the same education department fined a Middelburg teacher R5000 after the teacher forced Thoko Hlatshwayo, 16, to take an HIV test without family consent.

Hlatshwayo's family took the department to task, alleging that the privacy of their daughter and the confidentiality of her HIV tests results were violated when the school teacher allegedly ordered the epileptic girl to undergo the tests.

The teenager was forced to into taking the test after collapsing in front of the teacher and accidentally scratching her arm.