Another learner death is being probed by an independent law firm appointed by the Gauteng Department of Education.
12-year-old Latoya Temilton allegedly drowned on the 20th of January 2024 while at a school leadership camp.
The family of the Grade 7 learner from Laerskool Queenswood received the tragic news and have since been seeking answers of how her life could’ve been cut short.
The MEC of Education in Gauteng, Matome Chiloane, has given Nchupetsang Incorporated Attorneys and Conveyancers 7 days to compile a report that will explain exactly what transpired when Temilton allegedly drowned at the camp that took place at Wag ‘n Bietjie Resort in Witkoppen, Olifantsfontein.
“There are reports that have come through from the district, but we need more answers around what happened. We need to know who removed their eye from the bouncing ball, who removed their eye from the children. We need greater detail so that the parents can find closure, the school community can find closure, our learners and teachers can find closure,” Chiloane said.
He explained that schools are given guidelines on what to do upon embarking on an excursion and that these include signed documentation that stipulates that children will be safe and come back safely.
“The school did comply in terms of the necessary documentation and guidelines. That one I can confirm. This was an authorized trip. But that is not the part that we are worried about. After complying with documentation, there needs to be action taken on what to do at an excursion. Did you do what you said you will do? And that’s what we are trying to find out. The law firm will uncover those answers,” added Chiloane.
He also believes that this law firm is a reputable company that will assist the department to get to the bottom of this.
Meshack Nchupetsang who represented the law firm, explained that in order to get answers, there will be terms of reference that would need to be covered and those include consultations and interviews with all the relevant stakeholders and in this instance, those will include the learners, teachers, principal, school governing body (SGB) and the school management teams (SMT).
“We will be doing all the fact findings, interrogate the allegations and circumstances around what happened and then we also need to report on how the child died. We need all the information we can get to assist us in compiling the report,” Nchupetsang said.
Not the first time a learner drowns
A similar incident happened in 2020 when Enock Mpianzi, a Grade 8 learner from Parkton Boys’ High School, drowned in January of that year at Nyathi Bush and River Break during a school orientation camp. Then Gauteng Education MEC, Panyaza Lesufi also lodged an investigation to find out exactly what led to Mpianzi’s death.
According to a 2021 News24 article, the investigation found that Mpianzi was last seen when a makeshift raft that he and other classmates were on, overturned in the river hours after they had arrived at the camp and his body was only found two days later.
“Several stakeholders, including the school’s principal were found to be at fault for the boy’s death. The principal, Malcolm Williams, was dismissed after he was found guilty of allowing the trip to go ahead without approval from the department and for not making sure there was a correct roll call for pupils attending the camp,” the News24 article stipulates.
The family and the department reached a settlement agreement a year and four months after the tragedy.
More stakeholders to help with investigation
According to the Chief Director for Legal Services at the department, Adv. Ntini Mashigo, the law firm will also need to reach out to the police for a post-mortem report because Temilton’s cause of death will also form part of the investigation.
“Where the incident happened, there were cameras. Getting the footage will be very helpful so we can get to understand what happened,” she elaborated.
School cooperation
The school’s principal, Rico Ludick, has promised that the school will cooperate fully with the investigations, while a member of the SGB, Eddie Potgieter, is still shocked and emotional.
“At this stage, the school and the SGB is in mourning, this is a tragic loss for us. We are more than a family here, we really care about our school children and we care about the families. This was truly tragic, that’s all I can say,” Potgieter said.
Temilton was laid to rest in Mpumalanga on Saturday, 27 January 2024