{"id":46092,"date":"2025-12-28T10:43:12","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T10:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=46092"},"modified":"2025-12-28T10:43:12","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T10:43:12","slug":"mpumalanga-primary-school-teacher-pupil-kissing-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/12\/28\/mpumalanga-primary-school-teacher-pupil-kissing-case\/","title":{"rendered":"Mpumalanga primary school teacher declared unfit to work with kids after pupil kissing case"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p><h2>The former teacher was found to have kissed a 13-year-old pupil on two occasions.<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A primary school teacher in Mpumalanga has been dismissed after the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) found him guilty of misconduct involving a Grade 7 pupil.<\/p>\n<p>The Mpumalanga Department of Education initiated disciplinary action against Andries Lodewick Lombaard, who was an English teacher at Laerskool Klipfontein in Emalahleni.<\/p>\n<p>The matter was referred to the ELRC following allegations that he kissed a 13-year-old pupil on two occasions earlier this year.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-pupil-s-evidence\">Pupil\u2019s evidence<\/h2>\n<p>During the arbitration hearing, the Grade 7 pupil testified that Lombaard taught her English during the 2024 academic year, but was no longer her teacher in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>She told the council that they became closer in November 2024.<\/p>\n<p>According to her testimony, they communicated through WhatsApp statuses and Snapchat, exchanging text messages and random pictures. <\/p>\n<p>The 13-year-old girl said she frequently visited Lombaard\u2019s classroom, sometimes with other pupils and at other times alone. <\/p>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ: \u2018Not truthful\u2019: TVET college lecturer fired for sexual harassment fails to get his job back<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>She testified that the first kissing incident occurred during February or March this year in the storeroom attached to Lombaard\u2019s classroom, where the teacher kissed her, and she reciprocated.<\/p>\n<p>She said the second incident occurred a few days later, again in the storeroom, when she hugged Lombaard before they kissed.<\/p>\n<p>The pupil told the ELRC that she later confided in another pupil, who reported the matter to the school\u2019s after-care worker, Natalie Pienaar.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-mother-informed-about-kissing-incidents\">Mother informed about kissing incidents<\/h3>\n<p>When Pienaar questioned the 13-year-old about the incident, she admitted to the kissing.<\/p>\n<p>Pienaar subsequently informed the pupil\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n<p>The complainant further testified that even after the incidents became known, she and Lombaard continued communicating on WhatsApp. <\/p>\n<p>She recounted that while she was on holiday with her family, they continued talking on Snapchat.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ MORE: TVET college lecturer cleared to return to work after \u2018excessive\u2019 suspension over sexual harassment claims<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The 13-year-old also revealed that she wrote a letter to Lombaard because she believed he might think she had deliberately disclosed the incidents to others. <\/p>\n<p>In the letter, she apologised for what had happened.<\/p>\n<p>She added that after her mother discovered WhatsApp status messages were still being exchanged between her and Lombaard, she instructed her to delete them from her cellphone, which she did.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-witness-testimony\">Witness testimony<\/h3>\n<p>Pienaar testified before the ELRC and corroborated most of the pupil\u2019s evidence.<\/p>\n<p>Another witness, Denesy van Dyk, also supported the pupil\u2019s version and Pienaar\u2019s testimony. <\/p>\n<p>Van Dyk said she instructed the 13-year-old that there should be no further contact with Lombaard.<\/p>\n<p>She further testified that she regularly checked the pupil\u2019s cellphone and discovered screenshots showing communications between the pupil and Lombaard. <\/p>\n<p>Van Dyk said she forwarded the screenshots to herself and to the pupil\u2019s father.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-lombaard-s-defence\">Lombaard\u2019s defence<\/h3>\n<p>Lombaard denied that there was any intimate or special relationship between him and the pupil, and rejected the allegation that any kissing occurred.<\/p>\n<p>He testified that the 13-year-old had never visited his classroom alone, stating that pupils regularly came to his class in groups to greet him or ask how his day was going.<\/p>\n<p>He also denied having any communication with the pupil either before or after the alleged incidents.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ MORE:\u00a0Number of school sexual misconduct cases being investigated in the triple digits<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Lombaard claimed that the only Snapchat and WhatsApp messages he sent were intended for his two estranged girlfriends. <\/p>\n<p>He further testified that he did not know Pienaar prior to the matter arising.<\/p>\n<p>The teacher added that he previously administered a WhatsApp group for pupils, but said it was discontinued after the allegations emerged.<\/p>\n<p>He alleged that the pupil may have fabricated the allegations because she had a crush on him.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-elrc-ruling\">ELRC ruling<\/h3>\n<p>In his judgment, ELRC arbitrator Moraka Abel Makgaa said that after analysing the entire evidence, he was persuaded that the pupil\u2019s version should be preferred over Lombaard\u2019s testimony.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe totality of Mr Lombaard, on the other hand, was characterised by bare denials and lacked important details,\u201d Makgaa said.<\/p>\n<p>He emphasised that it could reasonably be concluded that the kissing incidents did occur.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am not prepared to accept the proposition that the whole kissing incident had everything to do with an ulterior motive on the part of the complainant and\/or her mother.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was no credible evidence which was adduced by the employee party to support the existence of a conspiracy theory against Mr Lombaard by the complainant and her mother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Makgaa found Lombaard guilty of misconduct and ruled that he was unsuitable to work with children.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe employee, Andries Lodewick Lombaard, is hereby dismissed as an employee of the Mpumalanga Department of Education.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOW READ:\u00a0Teacher dismissed for sexual harassment after denying smacking Grade 8 pupil\u2019s bums<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Mpumalanga #primary #school #teacher #declared #unfit #work #kids #pupil #kissing #case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The former teacher was found to have kissed a 13-year-old pupil on two occasions. A primary school teacher in Mpumalanga&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46093,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46092"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46092\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46094,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46092\/revisions\/46094"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}