Two North West educators have been dismissed after they were found guilty of improper relationship and sexual assault on learners.This brings to seven the number of educators dismissed in the province for similar offences in the previous financial year. The matter was referred to the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) earlier this year after the emergence of a shocking exhibits of a video of former Golf View Secondary School Educator Modise Mokomele allegedly having sex with a pupil.
The video was reportedly shared with the educator by one of the learners’ friends.The ELRC dismissed Mokomele together with Paseka Molefe, the principal of Letsatsing Secondary School in Mmabatho, after finding him guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old learner.Speaking on YOU FM Newshour, ELRC spokesperson Bernice Loxton expressed concern that beside an increase of such cases and of sexual misconduct, they’re also of statutory rape as a relationship of educators and learners is strictly prohibited in the employment of educators Act as well as the South African council for Educators (SACE) code of conduct.
“In both cases the teachers were found guilty of sexual misconduct, and they were immediately dismissed.We submitted the guilty verdict to the department of social development for them to include the names of these two educators in the child protection register and we also submitted the award to SACE to consider deregistering the teachers if found guilty through their processes and struck them off the teachers roll. In our attempt also to prohibit the teachers from getting entry into the system we also shared the award with the North West Department of Education so that they block these teachers on persal,” said Loxton.
ERLC said they’re concerned that most of the cases referred to them are of sexual assault but also disturbing is that there are cases of teachers having sexual relations with learners.“If we look at the financial year 1 April 2024 that ended on the 31st of March 2025, we had 111 cases of sexual misconduct that were referred to us. Seven of them were from the North West, so we have seven teachers found guilty in the province. There has been an increase if you we look at two financial years for instance in 2023/24 we had 82 cases referred to us, while in 2024/25 financial year that ended in March, we had 111 cases that were referred to the council.However, because of the special and complex nature of these cases, some of them are unfortunately still unresolved,” explained Loxton.
In addition, the council said that the perpetrators and victims were given equal opportunities to argue their cases before its inquiry arbitrator working with an independent commissioner who is appointed for every case.Loxton said the cases of statutory rape were opened at the SAPS by the Department of Education in the province, before the misconduct was referred to them.
