Perpetua Murungweni
Gokomere High School pupils had to be stopped by the Zimbabwe Republic Police on their way to Masvingo Town, today September 26, 2023, where they wanted to hand over a petition to the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.
The School Head Acquanos Mazhunga could neither confirm nor deny when he was called for comment and said he was driving and would call later.
Sources within the school said the boys marched to Masvingo Harare Highway protesting against alleged expulsion of two fellow classmates who were expelled from school after fighting.
“They wanted to go to town to hand over a petition to the PED. They had a number of issues but the main was that two of their classmates who are supposed to write this year and were expelled after fighting.
School authorities followed them and tried to negotiate with them but they failed to stop them only to be stopped by the police at Masvingo 10 km peg.
In 2021 about 23 taken by police after another demo allegedly poor diet and learning conditions at the same school.
In the same year Mazhunga, his deputy Cephas Vhurumuku, Gokomere Central Primary School (CPS) acting head Mhangarai Masakadza, acting deputy head Alex Mawaya and Priest in Charge James Magadzire were dragged to the Anti-corruption court for misappropriation of school funds after parents and guardians of children at Gokomere Schools wrote a letter to the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education calling for the expulsion of the heads and the priest in charge.
In 2012 again when Mazhunga was head at Mukaro High, there was a massive demo where all girls at the school marched to Gutu – Roy highway in protest over a number of challenges and that prompted his transfer to Gokomere.
