Boy, 14, was left traumatised after four learners shoved is head in the toilet bowl. Picture: File
“I have recurring nightmares about how those boys dipped my head in the dirty toilet bowl.”
These were the words of a 14-year-old boy who was bullied by four learners in Leiden High School in Delft.
It was the Grade 8 learner’s second day at school when the humiliating incident happened inside a cubicle in a boy’s toilet last Friday.
The boy’s mom said she was alerted and when she got to the staff room, the teen was standing inside a bin and crying.
She said teachers failed to help him and she suspects it was because he is black.
In the presence of his mom, the 14-year-old explained in detail what happened on Friday.
He explains: “I was in IsiXhosa classroom, when I asked my teacher to go to the toilet. I got inside and when I was peeing, I heard someone running inside.
“There were four boys, they came to the cubicle and they grabbed my head and tried to push me into the toilet. When I tried to balance, another boy kicked me and I ended up inside the pot with my head.
“One of the boys put his hand in a plastic bag before scooping poo and then smeared it on my face and uniform.”
The Grade 8 learner said when he got out the boys had already run out of the toilet.
The crushed schoolboy adds: “I had the faeces covering my eyes and I couldn’t see them.
“I couldn’t do anything. I left the toilet and everyone was looking at me, some of the learners were laughing at me, taking pictures and videos. I went to my class teacher who said we should go to the staff room.”
The traumatised laaitie is now suffering from nightmares and doesn’t want to return to the school.
He adds: “The kids who go to school with me laugh when they see me walking in the streets.
“I don’t want to go back to school [Leiden High] because I will be a laughing stock.
His mom, 41, said she wants accountability from the school and the boys.
“When I arrived at the school my son was standing there, the teachers didn’t even provide a cloth to clean himself, he was still dirty.
“I believe my child wasn’t assisted because of the colour of his skin, if he was coloured he would have been helped.
"The principal didn’t apologise or even say how he would deal with this. I’m going to take this to the police.”
Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said on Monday the district officials visited the school to make enquiries and to provide support.
She adds: “In terms of policy, an investigation by the SGB is currently underway. The School Governing Body will convene to determine the disciplinary process going forward."
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