A long-awaited report into the events that unfolded at Selborne College last month has revealed that four boys involved in a fight that gained huge traction on social media will undergo counselling and other corrective measures.
The report comes after an image was posted by Buffalo City Municipality spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya on his Facebook page on January 25. The image showed his Grade 10 nephew, 15, with a torn lip.
Ngwenya claimed there was a racial tone to the incident, that 15 boys had beaten his nephew and that they were all white.
However, a report from Selborne College headmaster Andrew Dewar and submitted to education MEC Mlungisi Mvoko at the weekend states only four boys were involved in the fight that left Ngwenya’s nephew bleeding.
It also states that the nephew had been reported as being involved in “a number of bullying incidents dating back to his Selborne Primary days”.
Seven boys had previously experienced bullying at the hands of the boy, Dewar’s report states.
The report, dated last Friday, slams Ngwenya, as well as the Daily Dispatch and other media platforms for sensational reporting.
It states seven boys allegedly previously bullied by the nephew were “slapped, verbally abused or simply intimidated into a situation which could result in possible retaliation”.
According to the report seen by the Dispatch, on Tuesday January 25 Ngwenya’s nephew had disrupted class while work was meant to be completed.
Two of the boys asked him to sit down and concentrate on his work so that others could get on with theirs.
“Verbal altercations began resulting in three boys being physically grabbed and/or held by the alleged victim [nephew]. The alleged victim then told them that ‘we will finish this at break time’.”
At break time, the report states, the alleged victim approached one of the boys and engaged in a verbal altercation, and then proceeded to slap him in the face, which resulted in the other boy slapping him back.
A scuffle between the boys then broke out.
A friend of the boy the nephew had slapped then stepped in to separate them, asking the nephew to stop. However, the nephew continued and slapped the boy who had attempted to intervene, who in turn retaliated by punching him once.
Another boy then stepped in to intervene and also threw a punch against the nephew, the report states.
The school found all four boys guilty of fighting.
It has now invited all parties to attend a formal hearing with Dewar in his office to conclude the process as soon as possible.
“All boys” will receive counselling on anger management and bullying for a minimum of two sessions a week from either the school guidance counsellor or a professional social worker; and all boys in the fight will receive the necessary punishment for fighting on the school grounds.
“The finding is that this was simply a fight between two Selbornians.”
The report says the school, governing body and community are “deeply concerned and aggrieved” with the manner in which the media has portrayed the school with regard to the incident.
“We are deeply concerned that the moral and professional integrity was wavered to create sensationalism in our community and report a number of unsubstantiated allegations from Mr Ngwenya.
“Mr Ngwenya is not a parent and is not a legal guardian of the alleged victim and therefore was not authorised in terms of the SA Schools Act to obtain any confidential information relating to the investigation of the boy,” it reads.
Responding to the report, Ngwenya said: “What can I say? If I look at it, I think I have moved on from the drama itself. I am now more concerned about my nephew and the other kids.”
Asked about his original Facebook post and the furore it created, Ngwenya said he was a concerned citizen and a member of the public and had a right to raise issues.
“When I was in the parking lot of the Medicross and saw [the state] of my nephew, and then I got his side of the story, I think anyone would have done what I did. I was basing it on what was in front of me.”
Ngwenya said none of the matters raised in the report “except for the number [of boys involved] could be seen as an exaggeration”.
“It could have felt like he was being hit by 15 people. If it was the other way around [black on white], it would still be an issue,” he said.
Education spokesperson Loyiso Pulumani said: “We are now studying the report, and we will take our cue from it.”
The Dispatch left a message with the school asking Dewar to call the paper, but at the time of writing he had not done so.
Since the story broke, the Dispatch has made multiple attempts to get Dewar and the school’s response. These included calls, e-mails, and SMSs.
The school consistently directed the Dispatch to the education department...