Nketa High School headmistress Ms Siphathisiwe Ncube together with the school`s bursar, Mrs Nobuhle Ndlovu, allegedly connived and converted school funds amounting to $80 000 to their own use.
The pair allegedly transferred the funds from the school`s bank account to a personal account, before the matter came to light.
In an interview with CITE, the School Development Committee (SDC) chairperson Mr Bekezela Mbambo said the committee discovered anomalies on the school funds and went to the bank to inquire only to discover the fraudulent act which implicated Ncube and Ndlovu.
The committee then reported the matter to the police and a case file was opened.
“In May 2018, we discovered these anomalies and reported the matter to Tshabalala police and they opened a docket. They came soon after elections to carry out investigations,” said Mbambo
Mbambo said the fraud section then conducted an audit which revealed that over $80 000 belonging to the school had gone missing.
He added that up to now they are yet to receive a progress report on the matter.
“We contacted the district education office but they have not yet responded. The police have also not come back to update us. We are not even sure if the docket is still there,” he said.
Sources close to the case say the bursar succumbed to pressure and resigned on Wednesday.
Parents are threatening to hold a demonstration if the matter is not addressed.
“We are planning on demonstrating because a lot of money was stolen. The headmistress, together with bursar should tell us where our money is,” said Mbambo.
Contacted for comment, Bulawayo Provincial Education Director Mrs Olicah Kaira said she was yet to get detailed information on the case.
“There are provincial audits being conducted at schools and l have not yet come across the Nketa High School issue as yet. I am still going through audited files,” she said.
She said there are ways in which such cases are handled and advised parents to let the Ministry of Education deal with such issues in a proper way.
