SADTU CONDEMNS BRUTAL ATTACKS ON EDUCATORS IN EKURHULENI
The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) is outraged at the targeted attacks on educators in Ekurhuleni, which have once again claimed the life of a dedicated teacher and left another fighting for his life in hospital.
On Monday, 13 April, a Barcelona Primary School educator and union member Tshepo Mankge was brutally gunned down as he was walking to school in Daveyton in the presence of his children, and the deputy principal and current acting principal of Lethulwazi Comprehensive School in Vosloorus, Kenneth Mandoyi was shot and critically injured hardly two kilometres from the school on his way home. He was rushed to hospital and is in the Intensive Care Unit.
The cold-blooded killing of Comrade Mankge, a committed professional who was always the first to arrive early at school on a daily basis and taught at the school for two decades shaping young minds, is a painful reminder that those entrusted with building the future of this country are killed with impunity. The fact that nothing was taken from him points to a deliberate and targeted attack.
SADTU strongly condemns these ghastly acts. We are alarmed by the growing pattern of violence in Ekurhuleni directed at school leadership particularly principals, deputy principals, and heads of departments. Since 2023, nearly ten educators have lost their lives in the region alone, yet justice continues to evade the victims and their families.
This failure to apprehend perpetrators emboldens criminal and sends a dangerous message that educators are easy targets. We therefore call on the security and justice cluster to act with urgency and decisiveness. These killings must be prioritised, thoroughly investigated and those responsible must be brought to book without delay.
The loss of these educators is not only a tragedy for their families but a blow to the broader community and the country at large. Teachers are nation-builders, and any attack on them is an attack on the future of our country.
SADTU extends its deepest condolences to the Mankge family during this painful period and wishes Comrade Mandoyi a full and speedy recovery.
ISSUED BY: SADTU Secretariat