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THE family of a 13-year-old boy that allegedly drowned while swimming at school says the only thing they want from the school is the truth so that they can get closure and heal.
Mountain Rise Primary grade six pupil Ntando Mabaso, from Woodlands, reportedly died after an alleged “accident” at the school’s swimming pool last Wednesday.
His family told the Echo that they were contacted by one of the teachers on Wednesday afternoon just after 1pm. They said the teacher asked who was available at home because Ntando had been involved in an “accident”.
“Ntando’s mother tried to take a taxi to school, but she failed and came back because of shock. The teacher from school then called again and said they are going to fetch a family member from the home and they are going to see Ntando in hospital. At the time we did not think that it was something serious until our uncle went to the hospital and found that Ntando had died.
“The school told us that when Ntando went to the hospital he was still alive but the doctor in the hospital told us Ntando died an hour before he was brought into hospital. We are so confused, we do not know what to believe,” said Ntando’s older sister Sanelisiwe Mabaso.
After the tragedy, Ntando’s family went to the school on Thursday to find out what happened on the day of the incident.
Thamansanqa Dlamini, who attended the meeting on behalf of the family, said they were not satisfied with the answers that they got from the school and the Department of Education.
“He said they were told not to ask certain questions because they are going to interfere with the investigation. They even told us a different story from what they told us on Wednesday.
“When we asked the teacher who was monitoring the children while swimming, she told us that she saw Ntando coming up and down in the swimming pool and she told him to stop what he was doing. She said when she realised that Ntando was drowning, she tried to use a stick to save him before she jumped into the water.
“We are not happy about these answers we received and the fact that we were told not to ask certain questions [makes it seem] like the school is hiding something. They insisted that the child was still alive when they took him to hospital,” Dlamini said.
Ntando’s mother said that, despite everything, the only thing that she wants to know is where her son died.
“I just want to know the right place where he died so that I can go and fetch his spirit and he can rest in peace. If they can just tell me the truth I will not do anything to them,” she said.
The family also revealed that Ntando’s white T-shirt was covered in blood and he had blood on his nose and eyes when they got to the hospital.
They said they are devastated by his passing and that they were going to miss him a lot.
“He loved hip-hop music and dancing. He would come back from school, turn up the television volume, and sing and dance for us. He loved doing sports, every kind of sport, but he wanted to be an athlete when he grew up, “ said his mother, adding that he was a good child that was full of jokes.
KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said they are waiting on clarity on the matter.
“We are waiting for the result of the police report so that we can check the facts. If the report shows signs of negligence then we will take disciplinary action,” he said.
Police confirmed that an inquest has been opened.
