A network of parents, teachers, lawyers and other concerned individuals have come together to fund and support embattled Pretoria High School for Girls principal Phillipa Erasmus, who has been suspended without pay.
This public call to “join the counteroffensive at Pretoria Girls” comes after Erasmus was found guilty of two counts of misconduct — allowing her husband to work voluntarily in the school gardens with approval of the school governing body (SGB) and failing to properly advise the SGB during the appointment of the school’s head of finance — following a protracted investigation by the Gauteng department of education.
A third charge of failing to enforce the school’s disciplinary code regarding an alleged racist WhatsApp group at the school was dismissed by the disciplinary hearing presiding officer, identified only as Mr V Phephenyani.
Erasmus was found guilty of allowing her husband, Mike Erasmus, to volunteer in the school gardens without remuneration because he had signed out a school vehicle, which was deemed to create a perception of nepotism or improper use of school resources.
The saga first began in July 2024 when 12 white matric girls were suspended for participating in a WhatsApp group alleged to be racist.
The Gauteng education department mounted a highly publicised campaign alleging a “culture of racism” at the school and an external investigation was initiated, focusing intensely on Pretoria Girls.
The investigation lasted 95 days and reportedly shifted from racism to misgovernance. It recommended misconduct charges against Erasmus and other staffers.
The 12 girls suspended for sharing racist comments on a “whites only” WhatsApp group — some of whom had not participated in the conversations at all — were all exonerated of any wrongdoing.
Former president Thabo Mbeki intervened, personally reviewing the WhatsApp transcripts. He concluded that they contained no racism and criticised the GDE’s approach as reckless, one-sided and politically charged.
He warned that the department’s conduct risked “destroying the lives of innocent children and educators” and eroding public trust in education governance.
In March this year parliament’s basic education committee conducted a hearing at the school, where Erasmus faced intense, hostile questioning from MPs.
Erasmus was notified of the guilty findings last week and informed that as from this Monday she is under suspension without pay for three months.
Activist and lawyer Richard Wilkinson, who has written on the case after being briefed by concerned parents, has issued a call for people to “join the counter-offensive at Pretoria Girls”.
“These feeble charges were all that the Gauteng department of education could produce after subjecting Mrs Erasmus and the rest of Pretoria Girls to an open-ended investigation into what it claimed was a ‘culture of racism’ at the school,” Wilkinson said.
He asked for donations to be paid into a trust fund that would be administered by Savage, Jooste and Adams Inc, a Pretoria law firm that has supported Erasmus and other school officials “in the face of the sustained campaign of persecution by the Gauteng department of education”.
Wilkinson said the crowdfunding campaign, structured and administered in co-operation with the Free Speech Union of South Africa, would prioritise compensating Erasmus for the financial losses she suffers as a result of the sanction, with the proviso that if it is lifted and she does get paid, she will reimburse the fund what she has received. Any funds received more than her financial losses will be used to support other teachers in a similar position.
Gauteng education spokesperson Steve Mabona said Erasmus was was given a fair hearing and findings were made known to her.
“Since this is an internal matter, the outcome may not be made public but communicated to the affected employee. It must be noted that the employee and employer have the right to appeal the chairperson’s finding and/or sanction to the MEC within five days of receipt. The MEC may uphold or dismiss the appeal and may in certain instances amend the sanction,” Mabona said.
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