Screenshots of WhatsApp messages, allegedly sent by a teacher to a 17-year-old Grade 12 learner, are at the centre of a sexual harassment investigation now under way at Minerva Secondary School in Alexandra.

The Gauteng department of education confirmed that the teacher has been placed on precautionary suspension pending the outcome of the formal investigation. According to the Congress of South African Students (Cosas), the messages include the teacher allegedly proposing to pursue an inappropriate relationship with the learner.

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The matter drew massive attention after pupils boycotted classes and gathered outside the school gates on August 18, demanding the teacher’s dismissal. The protest disrupted a full day of teaching and learning, prompting district officials, the school’s management team, and police to intervene to stabilise the situation.

How the allegations emerged

Cosas said it was alerted to the matter roughly a week before the protest, after a single learner came forward about the alleged incident. Cosas says it has since gathered evidence to support the claims.

According to the education department, the alleged inappropriate communication began in June 2026, and continued through WhatsApp and other contact. The matter was escalated to the Johannesburg east district for investigation, and the department’s labour relations unit has since conducted a preliminary inquiry.

Gauteng Education MEC’s spokesperson Onwabile Lubhelwana said the allegations include comments in which the teacher allegedly told the learner she could be his wife or his girlfriend. He said the learner rebuffed the advances, but that the content reviewed by officials suggested the teacher was persistent.

Lubhelwana also raised concerns about how the teacher allegedly obtained the learner’s contact details in the first place, saying they appear to have come from a WhatsApp group originally set up to support schoolwork.

Department responds to the incident

Gauteng MEC for Education, Sport, Arts, Culture, and Recreation Lebogang Maile said he was deeply concerned by the allegations, and stressed that any claims of misconduct toward a learner must be investigated thoroughly and without fear or favour. “Educators occupy positions of trust and responsibility. Our schools must remain safe spaces where learners are protected and respected.”

At the same time, Maile appealed to pupils and stakeholders to allow the process to run its course, rather than continue disrupting classes, noting that while some learners were kept from entering the school on August 18, those scheduled to sit assessments and exams that day were still able to do so.

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He said a recovery plan would be put in place to make up for the teaching time lost. “We understand the seriousness of the concerns raised. However, disrupting teaching and learning cannot be the solution. We must protect the affected learner while equally safeguarding the right of every learner to receive an education.”

What happens next

Cosas Johannesburg regional co-ordinator Rethabile Mogotsi said stakeholders, including union and community representatives who met with school officials on August 18, were told the suspension would remain in place while the investigation proceeds. “Suspension comes with investigations. So, from right now, investigations are going on until August 24. Then they are going to give direction to say what is going to happen to him.”

The department says psychosocial support is being provided to the affected learner.

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