Ms Sharon Ward, principal of the Ridgeway Independent School, said this week that she would like to clarify a few facts with regard to the article in last week’s Zoutpansberger about the school’s being scammed out of a considerable amount of school funds.

In a statement to the newspaper, Ward says that, due to the staff member’s impeccable and dedicated service, the school board has gone to great lengths to support the staff member concerned.

From the onset, says Ward, the board decided that, due to the fact that it was parents’ money, the staff member had to be held accountable, as the school’s procedures had not been followed. They also decided to settle the matter amicably, to pay the legal costs in recovering the lost funds and to personally assist and get actively involved in fundraising to recoup the money lost.

Ward further states that at no time had the relevant banks denied liability.

“Both ABSA and FNB have been extremely helpful and are investigating all angles of the matter,” says Ward. She concludes by saying that she would like to thank the school board, staff, parent body, the banks and the local community, who have all been extremely supportive about this incident.

In the meantime, Mr Alan Whyte, chairman of the school’s governing body, has urged the public to help the school recover the lost money.

“I think that, by now, most people associated with our school have been made aware of the theft of R57, 303.31 from our bank account. This is of course a disaster for our school’s finances in the light of the fact that we are committed to the building of a new classroom block, and, on top of this, have commitments to develop and run the school from day to day,” says Whyte in a letter received by the Zoutpansberger.

“The method used to defraud the school has been widely broadcast, but let me again state for the record that no fraud was committed by any member of the school staff, and that the staff member who was conned by these professional fraudsters has honourably agreed to do all she can to recoup the loss, to the point of allowing a percentage of her salary to be deducted monthly, even though she will struggle to do this. This says a great deal about the commitment of the staff member concerned to her job, and to the school!” adds Whyte.

In his letter, Whyte says that the school board has done all it can through the regular channels (the SAPS and the banks concerned) to try to get the fraudsters arrested and to try to show negligence on the part of the banks with the aim of recovering the money.

“Although the investigation is ongoing, I am not very optimistic that we will succeed. I am therefore making an appeal to all parents of our school, businesses in our town, businesses wider afield, and well-disposed individuals to make a donation or arrange a fundraiser to assist the school in recovering the money,” says Whyte.

Persons wishing to make a donation can make payments to Ridgeway Independent School at First National Bank, Louis Trichardt. The account number is 6201 304 8162 and the code is 260-149. The reference is “Fraud Appeal”.

“The School will issue you with an official receipt which you should give to your accountant, and he can claim the donation as an expense and save you some income tax. This applies to companies and individuals,” says Whyte.