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Sukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent
FEAR has gripped pupils attending Tsukuru Primary School in Bulilima District and they are no longer attending school following a vicious sex attack on a pupil on Tuesday.
A majority of parents have withdrawn their children from school while others have formed groups to escort pupils because of rapists and other criminals who roam the area.

The school has been forced to come up with an arrangement to accommodate pupils sitting for their Grade 7 examinations at nearby homesteads to prevent further attacks.

A serial criminal, Limukani Sibanda, 24, who is now on the run, on Tuesday raped and strangled a Grade 7 pupil who was on her way to write an examination and left her for dead.

An hour later, he molested his best friend’s mother, broke both her arms with a log and fractured her skull, before raping her and robbing her of R700.
The woman is battling for life at Plumtree Hospital.

Pupils from the area, including boys, told Chronicle they were now afraid of going to school without an adult to accompany them.

“Most of our classmates have been stopped from coming to school by their parents. Grade 7 pupils have moved to teacher’s cottages and homesteads close to the school. We are all afraid of this criminal,” said a pupil.

A number of children from the village walk about 20 kilometres through a bushy area to reach the school.

Villagers said they would not allow their children to go back to school before the Sibanda was arrested.

“We are all afraid because that evil boy (Sibanda) was spotted in the village yesterday. He is capable of anything. Our women and children are not safe as long as he remains at large,” said a villager who requested anonymity.

He added: “A number of rape cases have occurred within the area in the past with victims being school pupils but the culprits were never caught”.

This reporter caught up with Buhlebenkosi Ngwenya at her home with her two children and two more children from neighbouring homesteads who have not attended school for the past two days.

‘’As you can see my children have been at home for the past two days together with these two children from neighbouring homes and it is because we are all living in fear,’’ said Ngwenya.

‘’This is the third rape case which has occurred in our area and the culprits are still walking scot free. I cannot continue allowing my children to attend school in such an unsafe environment”.

She said she no longer felt safe at her homestead as she was afraid that the culprit in the recent rape cases would attack her and her children in their home.

Another villager, Sanele Mhlanga said her Grade 7 niece had been taken by teachers at the school so that she would not miss her exams.

She said they took her to the school on Wednesday and she would be staying there until she finished writing her exams.

“The situation is tense. I think it will affect our children and cause them to fail,” said Mhlanga.

A mother of two, Luzibo Moyo, said it was better to keep her children safe rather than send them to school because the risk of being raped is high.

Moyo said her neighbour’s daughter was almost raped by a stranger while going to school in the company of her sister.

‘’This child that you see here was almost raped by a stranger together with her sister. You can see the kind of danger that our children are exposed to in this village,’’ she said.

Moyo said there was a need for a school to be built closer to their village in order to avoid disruption of lessons and victimisation of pupils.

The headmaster of Tsukuru Primary, Enock Chirove, said the absence of pupils at the school was a big challenge and plans were under way to introduce a school camp for pupils who stay far.

“Parents called the school today and the day before saying that their children would not attend school because of this rape incident. If children are not attending school then it means lessons are being disrupted,” he said.

Chirove said he had sent a report on the issue to the district education office.