Poobathie 'Poobie' Naicker Poobathie 'Poobie' Naicker
Durban -
The death of former school principal and one of the founding members of the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) has been described as a blow to the teaching profession.
Poobathie “Poobie” Naicker, 87, of Merebank, suffered a heart attack while attending a Sadtu meeting in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
Naicker was the first vice-president of Sadtu when it was formed in October 1990, and a former principal of Willowpark Primary School in Umhlatuzana, Chatsworth.
His son, Arul Naicker, said:
“He became a teacher in the 1940s and was very involved in community work. He later became the president of Tasa (Teachers’ Association of South Africa).”
His father was a selfless person who dedicated his life to the teaching profession. He was also a political activist who was associated with the likes of Pravin Gordhan, Mac Maharaj and Billy Nair.
“There was a serious challenge to teachers in the apartheid era because they were divided into different racial categories and departments of education. I am proud that my dad was pivotal in the launch of Sadtu, which represented for the first time in South Africa, the birth of a national, non-racial, non-sexist teacher union.”
Naicker grew up in Esperanza on the South Coast before moving to Merebank.
He was involved in various political activities and coincidentally died in the same week as his friend, RG Pillay.
His funeral will take place at the Merebank Tamil School Society Hall on Thursday from 11.30am.