Gauteng principal dismissed for allegedly misusing school funds.
A former Gauteng school principal has failed in his attempt to overturn his dismissal after an Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) arbitrator found that he had unlawfully used public school funds.
Senior ELRC arbitrator Coen Havenga ruled that the dismissal of P Bango by the Gauteng Department of Education was both substantively and procedurally fair, dismissing his application for retrospective reinstatement with full benefits.
Bango had been employed by the department since April 2013 and served as principal of Northview High School before later being demoted to deputy principal following a separate arbitration that set aside his appointment as principal. His subsequent dismissal stemmed from allegations of financial misconduct committed while he was acting principal.
The department charged Bango with four counts of misconduct under the Employment of Educators Act. The charges included allegedly using school funds to purchase goods worth R23,497 for his personal use from Makro, using school money to pay R1,396 towards a television licence, failing to provide supporting documents for school expenditure amounting to R16,770.57 and authorising cash withdrawals and "cash send" transactions totalling R25,280 while the school's bank card was in his possession.
