Lawyer of Limpopo teacher accused of rape presses court for bail – SABC News
The lawyer of the former teacher accused of raping a 13-year-old learner says public opinion should not be used to determine his bail application.
Michael Khumalo is presenting closing arguments in the bail application at the Mankweng Magistrate’s Court outside Polokwane in Limpopo.
The accused resigned from his position as a teacher after his arrest last month. He faces charges of rape and child sexual grooming.
Khumalo says the accused must be granted bail.
“The public will express its opinion, but our decision here in court should be based on what the public opinion is. Court should be more inclined to granting bail not than to refuse bail. At the end of this proceedings, any party which is not happy with the decision of the court has an option to take the matter further by either an appeal or review.”
Khumalo says the court can also grant bail with strict conditions.
“Refusing bail is not an ultimate solution. The state could have come and said: ‘Look let’s grant bail at a higher amount, but let’s put conditions in place to put an eye on the applicant’ – that is meeting the applicant halfway. The applicant has done so much, your worship, so much to compromise to meet the state halfway and what the state has done?”