The governing body of Pretoria High School for Girls has lost its legal attempt to obtain a report from the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) detailing findings from an investigation into alleged racism at the school.
The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ruled that the school must follow the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) if it wants to access the report, which was compiled by Mdladlamba Attorneys after the department launched a probe into claims of racial discrimination.
The controversy began after a group of students were accused of creating a “whites only” WhatsApp group where racially insensitive messages were shared. Twelve learners were charged and later acquitted in a disciplinary hearing held by the School Governing Body (SGB), which found the group to be a private platform. The Thabo Mbeki Foundation also reviewed the messages and concluded that the students were not guilty of racist conduct.
Despite those findings, the GDE conducted its own investigation and claimed to have found evidence of racial discrimination and institutional shortcomings at the school. The SGB wanted to review this report but first sought a court order compelling the department to release it.
Judge Graham Moshoana rejected the SGB’s application, stating that the school must use the PAIA process to request access. He noted that the SGB had never seen the report and could not yet prove its relevance to any review. “It is like wishing to buy a pig in a poke,” he remarked.
The judge concluded that the report falls under the provisions of PAIA, meaning the school cannot bypass the proper legal channels to obtain it. The ruling means the SGB must first complete the formal information access process before taking any further legal steps.