Bloemfontein – An eight-year-old Free State pupil, who was allegedly assaulted with a hosepipe after a dispute about homework, died from meningitis and not as a result of her injuries, local police said on Saturday.
Free State police spokesperson, Constable Peter Kareli, told News24 the pupil was allegedly assaulted on January 26 and her parents reported the case on February 9.
Nthabiseng Mtambo died at a hospital in Bethlehem on February 14.
It was believed the pupil had died as a result of the assault, but a post-mortem has revealed the pupil had contracted meningitis, said Kareli.
He said the Grade 3 teacher at the Reatile Primary School near Reitz in the Free State was initially charged with assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, but due to the post-mortem results, the charge was changed to common assault.
Spokesperson for the Free State department of education, Howard Ndaba, told News24 the teacher has since been suspended and faced an internal disciplinary hearing.
He said the department would also refer the matter to the South African Council for Educators for investigation.
“We are really disturbed and we want to send out a strong warning to teachers out there not to practice corporal punishment,” he said.
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