The ManicaPost
Lovemore Kadzura in Rusape
St THERESE High School has expelled nine students who were recorded in a video clip passionately kissing and caressing in pairs in the four corners of a classrooms at the school located 60 km outside Rusape.
The video, which has gone viral on social platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook, captures moments when the male and female students were fervently cuddling each other. This has set tongues wagging, with mostly parents and education authorities berating the school authorities for laxity of supervision.
Commentators have strongly blamed the school authorities for failing to stamp down authority and maintaining high disciplinary standards, leading to the disgusting behaviour by the students.
St Therese High is a partial boarding institution in Makoni West.
The school introduced a girls boarding wing in a move that saw it becoming the first boarding institution in Makoni West in 2016.
The institution was established in the 1960s as a teachers’ training college before being turned into a day secondary school after independence in 1983.
In the 1:38 seconds video clip that was shot using a cellphone, the deeply involved students were captured kissing, caressing and cuddling in the classroom.
The students were clad in school uniform and it is clear the video clip was shot in broad daylight with the full knowledge of the students.
One of the female students is clearly heard chuckling and commenting that “Siyana neni iwe” (leave me alone). The comment was directed at the person recording the video.
When reached for comment on Wednesday this week, the school head Mrs Euphrasia Mudiwa refused to entertain questions from The Weekender. She referred questions to responsible authority education secretary Mr Lawrence Chibvuri and the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.
“I cannot talk to you. Instead, you should talk to the education secretary Mr Lawrence Chibvuri in Mutare. St Therese High School belongs to the church, and he is the one empowered to talk to you. You can also ask officials from the parent ministry in Rusape,” said Mrs Mudiwa.
Makoni district schools inspector (DSI) Mr Nathaniel Machini said he was in a meeting, when contacted for a comment.
However, the provincial education director (PED) Mr Edward Shumba said he was aware of the video, which was now all over social media.
“Yes I am aware of it (the video), and it is still under investigation to verify if it’s true or false. I haven’t received a full report yet,” said Mr Shumba.
However, a source involved the school told The Weekender that the students caught in the romance debacle have since been sent packing by the school.
“The students featuring in that video clip have since been expelled from the school. Some were boarder students and others were day scholars.
‘‘Those writing exams are the ones only coming to school but are coming from their homes.
‘‘All the boys in the video clip are Form 4s. Two of the girls were in Form Two, one was in Form Three and two were Form 4 boarders,” said the well placed source.
