A Durban school principal will be hauled before the disciplinary committee of the provincial department of education for failure to take action against some teachers at his school accused of making sexual advances on pupils.

This emerged in the aftermath of the investigation conducted by the senior education officials who were tasked with probing incidents of sexual assault at Grosvenor Girls High, a school in Durban’s Bluff area. The investigation was triggered by a video which circulated online last week showing pupils voicing their frustrations and hurt, claiming that some male teachers were asking for sexual favours and often fondle them during class lessons.

On Monday, angry pupils and their parents took their war to the school, protesting and demanding that action be taken against the alleged perpetrators.

One of the concerned parents told Sowetan that his daughter has been severely traumatised by this ordeal. 

“My daughter is very dedicated to her school work. But recently, she hasn't been herself. Her marks dropped significantly. When her mother enquired about what was happening she said a teacher had sexually violated her. She even refuses to go to school,” the father said.

He said they had since opened a case with the police together with other parents whose daughters have suffered the same fate at the hands of their teachers.

Another parent, one of the pupil's mother, said: “When we send our kids to school, we do so in hoping that they'll be safe and be protected. We cannot have a situation where teachers take advantage of the genuine trust bestowed on them and make sexual advances to kids. We demand that the perpetrators be banned for life in the teaching profession.”

KwaZulu-Natal education department spokesperson Kwazi Mthethwa on Wednesday said a preliminary investigation had been conducted by senior officials of the department.

“At the moment there has been one teacher who has been placed on precautionary suspension until the investigation has been concluded,” said Mthethwa.

He said the school principal will also be summoned to explain why he failed to take action when the allegations were brought before him early this year.