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The Parktown Boys High principal was fired by the Gauteng education department after he was convicted of various acts of misconduct that led to the death of 13-year-old eighth-grader Enoch Mpianzi.
Malcolm Williams received a termination notice Monday from the department after being charged with three misconduct allegations in the Jan. 15 incident where he “unreasonably harmed the department’s administration, discipline or efficiency,” said spokesman Steve Mabona.
According to Mabona, Williams was found guilty of having eighth graders take a field trip to Nyathi Bush and River Break in the British for their orientation camp without prior approval.
READ ALSO: Parktown Boys principal returns to school because closure postpones hearing
Another guilty charge was that he failed to ensure that the correct roster was kept for all students on the field trip.
The third accusation, of which he was acquitted, was that he endangered the lives of the students by ignoring a set of safety rules and regulations by failing to ensure that the students who were going to participate in the water activities were provided with life jackets that led to Mpianzi’s death, Mabona said.
“The presiding officer, after careful consideration of the extenuating and aggravating circumstances, removed him accordingly. Therefore, you have the right to appeal to the MEC of Education against the conclusions of the president within five business days of receiving the notice of dismissal, “said Mabona.
READ ALSO: NPA awaiting forensic report from Enoch Mpianzi before announcing prosecution decision
Williams was suspended along with other district officials in January following the death of Mpianzi, who was washed away by the Crocodile River during orientation camp.
The student was found two days after his disappearance, after he was last seen when a makeshift bamboo raft that he and other students were on capsized into the river.
The children were reportedly left unsupervised during the aquatic activity by the river, where they had to make bamboo rafts which they tied together, as the teachers were supposedly playing during that time.
According to the tourist centers, no roll call was taken before the students left for the trip, which created confusion, since eight children could not be counted during the excursion.
Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi announced in June that the Mpianzi family was suing the department for 10 million rand in the death of their son.
READ ALSO: Enoch Mpianzi’s family sues Gauteng education department for R10m
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