The parent of a matric pupil at Good Hope Seminary High School has slammed the principal for boycotting their ball due to unpaid school fees.
The mother now wants the Western Cape Education Department to step in,
saying their daughters are being punished.
In an open letter emailed to parents, the palie details his disappointment at the R8000 annual fees going unpaid.
He says: “While your daughter had her ticket paid for, a dress purchased, nails and hair possibly done, we cannot do the necessary maintenance work at the school.
“Out of the 53 matrics attending the dance, ONLY 9 families have met the full fee commitment.
“I will not be attending the dance, an event that both I and my colleagues would love to be part of.
“I cannot in all good conscience support an occasion which parents happily pay for, but refuse to consider
fee commitments.
Calling their attitude a “disgrace”, the principal adds: “Those of you who have made a settlement arrangement to pay, please stick to this. Those who have shown us nothing but contempt, you will be handed over.”
The angry mom, who admits she still owes school fees, says they have now been left to their own devices to arrange a ball for their kids.
The principal directed all queries to the WCED.
Spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said the letter does not disqualify pupils from attending. “The principal is making the point that while parents fail to pay for school fees, they are contributing towards a dance.
“Dances are a privilege and not a right. Many of our schools are struggling to make ends meet,” she said.