Ex-pupil sues after 'beating left him disabled'

2012-08-06 11:46

Picture: Shutterstock

Johannesburg - A former Limpopo pupil is suing the department of basic education and a former teacher for R4m after he was left disabled by an alleged beating, The Sowetan reported on Monday.

Selly Oupa Mokonyama, 22, filed papers at the North Gauteng High Court, alleging that his teacher at the Molemo Primary School assaulted him with a broomstick when he was 8.

He said the teacher hit him several times on his buttocks, injuring his spinal cord.

"It was the most painful beating I was ever subjected to. I fell to the ground and could not get back up again," he told the newspaper.

"My screams drew the attention of a teacher next door, who came to my rescue. I have been from one hospital to another, but there is nothing the doctors can do for me."

He told the newspaper he eventually had an operation and was now able to sit, but that his balance had not been restored. He claimed he could not walk without the aid of crutches.

"I have had training from physiotherapists, but it is like riding a dead horse. I dreamed of being a soccer player and a mechanical engineer. She [the teacher] destroyed my life."

According to the newspaper the case was postponed to allow the department time to respond.

- SAPA