POLOKWANE – A gr. 3 learner’s brief disappearance from school in the company of an unknown man has motivated primary schools in the city to revisit their safety measures.
According to a teacher at the school where the child disappeared, the child was approached by an unknown man at school just after the school day had ended, and taken away.
“There are many stories about the alleged taking of the learner. We have launched an investigation surrounding the events of the day.
“I can confirm that the child was taken to her mother unharmed. The police have been notified of the incident and are doing their own investigation,” the teacher said.
This school, as well as other schools in the city, have made an urgent call to all parents to make sure that their children are collected from school as soon as possible, and not to make their children wait for longer than a few minutes when school has closed for the day.
Children must know the simple stranger-danger rules and not get into vehicles with people they do not know. Parents must also make sure that children know their parents’ names, cell phone numbers and places of work to insure that if they should get lost they have information that will assist in returning them to their parents.
While this incident did not occur at Laerskool Pietersburg, the school’s principal Peet Bredenkamp was prepared to share the following information with Review in the interest of keeping all children safe.
He said the school had various measures in place to ensure the well-being and safety of learners. “Making use of a gate pass that needs to be signed prevents children from leaving the schoolgrounds during school hours, and lists of people who are allowed to pick up each child are also very handy as these people have to provide proof of identification, which is then compared to the information that we have on file,” he explained.
“We also have what we call a blacklist of people who are not allowed to collect children at the school, and should they attempt to do so, they will be refused access,” he said.
Polokwane police spokesperson Lesiba Ramoshaba said no case regarding this incident had been opened with them. “However, parents must know at all times where their children are. Do not let them wonder around after school as this could lead to them becoming involved in all sorts of trouble, and even getting hurt.
“Report any suspicious persons to the police immediately and raise awareness with children to keep away from strangers at all times,” he advised.
