This is according to the Education Department spokesperson, Elias Malindi. He was reacting to the ongoing provincial education safety summit held in Rustenburg that kickstarted on Tuesday night with the hopes of finding solutions to the scourge of violence at schools, amongst others. He says parents, traditional leaders, together with businesses and government departments, need to work together to stop school violence.

OFM News previously reported that the national department of education spokesperson, Elijah Mhlanga, said the parents need to be engaged as they believe that they are responsible for the behaviour of the learners. Malindi says the department had about ten commissions that were dedicated to looking into issues besieging the schools in the province.

The summit follows the recent incidents that threatened the safety of teachers and learners at schools. Schools in the province have since experienced a huge volume of incidents that sometimes resulted in the loss of lives, which is something the department opposes very strongly. OFM News reported on numerous incidents, amongst others the death of a 24-year-old Mathematics teacher, Gadimang Daniel Mokolobate, who was stabbed with a knife by a 17-year-old learner at Ramotshere High School in Dinokana outside Zeerust last year. Malindi said in addressing challenges of school safety, the department is hosting a provincial school safety summit and it will provide a platform for debate and reaching amicable solutions to ensure improved safety measures at schools.

OFM News