Parents call for principal’s reinstatement, cite decline in discipline

Parents of learners at Madisong Secondary School in Hammanskraal, have called on government to reinstate corporal punishment in schools.

The parents staged a protest outside the school today, demanding the immediate reinstatement of suspended principal, Bethuel Mooka.

They say since the embattled principal was removed from the facility a few months back, discipline at the school has significantly deteriorated.

Mooka is currently under investigation after students accused him of severely beating them, with some claiming he nearly broke their bones.

Since his removal from the school, parents fear that their children have been left in ruins, saying their academic performance is declining.

Madisong Secondary School, is one of the best performing schools in the district, having achieved a 95.8 % matric pass rate in 2024 under the Mooka’s leadership.

One parent, Queen Letsoko, says corporal punishment is needed back in schools to keep the learners in check.

“Corporal punishment must be there, especially in schools. If a child doesn’t listen to their parents at home, they must know that when they get to school they must obey the rules or suffer the consequences,” says Letsoko.

She believes Mooka wasn’t wrong for beating the learners.

“The way things are since he left is just a mess. The learners jump the school fence. I stay around here and I see them. Every Friday, they form gangs and fight amongst themselves with knives, they smoke weed, and just now they were drinking alcohol,” adds Letsoko.

She suggests that parents who are against Mooka’s leadership, should enroll their children at other schools.

Other parents have revealed that, they found their children last week, abusing substances during school hours at one of the learners’ home.

Deputy Chairperson of the secondary school’s governing body, Edmund Kekana, who is also a parent to one of the grade 12 learners there, says several learners ditched school to go drink and smoke.

“On Thursday, we took seven of the learners out of a house here in the neighbourhood. They had bought alcohol and weed. The house just reeked of weed. We took them out of there and brought them to school,” says Kekana.

Kekana who has been extremely disturbed by the incident, says he can’t believe the kids left their homes wearing school uniform only to cause trouble.

He believes the learners are now out of order, because the principal, Mooka, isn’t present to instill discipline.

The disgruntled parents, say the acting principal lacks the leadership required to run the school effectively.

They say they have grown tired of their unruly kids, adding that the learners were better off with Mooka at the school.

One parent, Joseph Sekgwati, finds it baffling that Mooka was removed for doing what they believe is within his mandate.

“The principal was right according to Act 75 of the Justice Act of 2007, which says if a child gets out of line, they need to be disciplined. The principal is like another parent; a father at home has the right to discipline a child. Even the police, when they catch someone who is out of line, they have the right to do light discipline. The principal did his job by disciplining the kids. Why is the department now punishing him for what he is supposed to do?,” remarks Ntate Sekgwati.

Frustrated parents accuse the Department of Basic Education of failing them and the learners, by suspending the principal.

Alfred Mofomme, a concerned parent, claims that learners’ academic performance has suffered noticeably since Mooka was suspended.

“The children’s academic performance is dropping and they are busy with things, which are out of hand. When Mr. Mooka was around, we were not experiencing such things. That’s why today, as parents, we are here because our kids are crying saying they want the principal back because the school has now become lawless. The matric learners are no longer disciplined. We want to know why they are keeping the principal at the district office because the school is now in ruins,” says Mofomme.

 

The parents are expected to have a meeting with the school’s managemen tomorrow, regarding their concerns.

Written by: Odirile Rabalao