The Madaheni Combined School of Makhitha village in the Kutama came to a standstill last week, when pupils and teachers were searching for a missing teacher. The body of Mr Lawrence Mulibana (38), a mathematics teacher, was later found hanging from a tree.

The school principal, Mr John Malada, said the incident had left many learners traumatised and it would take a long time and specialised counseling for them to recover fully. “We convey our deepest condolences to family members for their great loss. This has also affected us as the school,” he said.

Gladsy Munyai, sister of the deceased, says his brother went missing last Tuesday. “I became suspicious when hours went by without hearing anything from him. I tried to call him on his cell phone, but his phone was off. The phone has been off since the day of his disappearance and this aroused the suspicion that something might have happened to him. I tried to call him again the following day, but his phone was still off.”

One of the teachers at Madaheni Combined School where the deceased was working, Samuel Tshifura, said the incident had left the school with sore hearts. He said the school had high expectations from Lawrence and his death had robbed the school, family and the community of a good educator who had good teaching skills.

Mulibana is survived by his wife and two children. Mulibana’s funeral will take place at Tshaulu Ha-Gondo on Saturday morning, starting at 06:30.