THOHOYANDOU – The former principal of Pwaswana High School, Mr Gerson Muthaphuli (56), is now a free man. The case, in which he was accused of rape, was finalised in the Thohoyandou Regional Court on Monday.

Muthaphuli was arrested in February last year, following allegations that he had raped a 21-year-old girl who was a pupil at his school.

The case was postponed several times in the Thohoyandou Magistrate's court before it was transferred to the Regional Court. The court could not find enough evidence to prove that Muthaphuli had indeed raped the girl. He was consequently not found guilty and discharged.

Although he is now a free man, it remains to be seen whether he will be reinstated as a school principal or not. Muthaphuli was suspended from duty, with full pay, shortly after his arrest, pending a departmental disciplinary hearing.

He was later dismissed from work after the departmental disciplinary committee found him guilty on a charge of gross misconduct. In a telephone interview with the superintendent general for the Department of Education in the province, Prof Harry Nengwekhulu, on Tuesday evening, Nengwekhulu confirmed that Muthaphuli had been struck off the departmental payroll several months ago.

He revealed that Muthaphuli felt that the department had been too harsh with him when they dismissed him, and that he had filed an appeal with the MEC for the department, the response of which was still being awaited.