A heart-wrenching suicide note from a 17-year-old Grade 11 pupil from Hoërskool Kriel in Mpumalanga details the pain and suffering the pupil suffered after he was wrongfully accused of raping a fellow female learner.
It is reported that Bafana Sithole died by suicide inside one of the school’s storeroom facilities following unfounded rape accusations by a fellow pupil.
In a suicide note addressed to his mother, the 17-year-old teenager said the rape accusations have affected his life negatively.
It is reported that the accuser later confessed to having lied about the rape claims against him.
"Mama, I hope this letter finds you. By the time you are reading this I will be already gone. Let me love you and leave you. Sengihambike maye (I am gone). I have suffered in this world all alone. I was accused by those who are better than me.
"May she forgive me for what I did to her but I did not rape her. I am not a rapist," Sithole said.
Following this incident, messages of grief and love poured in on social media with many sympathising with the family.
Sithole wrote that his heart had stopped functioning after he was accused of rape.
"My heart of gold has stopped beating. What was my fault. No one knew this day would come. I am now leaving her in the Darkest world and her sky will turn Grey. May my tears will be a golden memory in her life. I am not a rapist. What did I do for her to hate me this much. I have opened and closed my grave. I have fought a good fight and and have finished my race. My time to be on this earth has come to an end,“ Sithole wrote.
It is reported that Sithole killed himself after writing an exam on Thursday.
Mpumalanga Education spokesperson Gerald Sambo confirmed the incident, adding that one of the teachers found his body hanging in one of the classrooms.
"The learners are currently writing their exams and they had just finished writing the exam. Some other learners had already left to go home and one of the educators went back into the classroom where the learner was found and already, he had hanged himself.
“They called medical practitioners together with the local doctor who. They tried to resuscitate the child but unfortunately it was already too late," Sambo said.
Sambo said the department would visit the school to offer support to the family and the affected learners. Officials were visiting the school on Friday to get more details around the incident and provide support.
*Anyone with thoughts of suicide can call South African Depression and Anxiety Group’s (Sadag) Suicide Crisis Helpline on 0800 567 567.
The Star