Turning now to other news, Education Minister Patrick Faber today said that government will try to help with the deplorable situation Holy Angels RC school in Pomona. As we showed you on Monday, the school is in an advanced state of decay - leading to rat and bat infestations - amongst other misfortunes.
Because of this and the associated health risks, parents are keeping their children home. And while the fault lies with Catholic Management - ultimately, the buck stops at the state - which has to find a way to keep the school open. Today, Education Minister Patrick Faber told us what he plans to do:..
Hon. Patrick Faber- Minister of Education
"The Ministry is prepared to give some support to the initiative. I have been contacted by the principal via email. Dr. Babb, our Chief Education Officer, has said that business people have indicated as well that they are willing to give the materials. I believe we have the commitment, as you told me, from West Track and from Bennies and the Ministry will put in its plug as well. But we have to insist as well that the church does its part, since they are the managing authority, in order to ensure that this kind of situation does not happen. It is not only rescuing a situation that has gone so terribly bad. Our schools require constant maintenance, you know- painting of the buildings and minor repairs. It only gets this bad when we don't do anything for many many years. And that is a practice that many in the country, including the government does not practice very well."
Of course, the management says that parents of 70% of the kids in the school have not paid their fees. This is a chronic problem in rural schools and Faber discussed it today:..
Hon. Patrick Faber- Minister of Education
"I want to say to parents as well, because these rural schools don't charge a lot of money. And there are many who believe that in fact they need not pay that money. I am working on a case right now in another rural area, I will tell you, where the fee is $10 for the year and more than half of the children have not paid the $10. I'm not saying that everybody can always afford this bill but you know, we quite often prioritize how we spend and parents quite often have other priorities. Imagine, if the fee is $10 a year and you pay a dollar a month then you must get through with that fee. But there are some who believe that they ought not to pay anything at all."
We'll keep following this story to tell you when things return to a semi normal state at the village school.
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