Outgoing president of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Union (SVGTU), Oswald Robinson, has blasted the Ministry of Education, accusing the three ministers and the chief education officer of ignoring repeated calls for a meeting to address pressing, important issues.
During the “Teachers’ Talk” programme on BOOM FM, last Sunday, the union’s leadership said the union and the new ministers of education under the 3-month-old new government need to discuss a number of issues.
The issues range from a lack of basic supplies at schools, the condition of some school buildings and public financing of education to better guarantee sustainable development amid the government’s fiscal challenges.
“I don’t know if some kind of censorship is happening in the Ministry of Education. Because just after election, we have been writing the Honorable Philip Jackson, Minister of Education … and he is not responding,” Robinson said.
Robinson said that in its “last letter”, the union “asked for a meeting of the three ministers”.
He said the Chief Education Officer, Kay Martin-Jack, has a “record of not responding” to correspondence sent “so, if there’s censorship taking place, we need to know…
“Honourable Terrence Ollivierre, if you’re hearing, ask your other colleagues why is it this meeting is not taking place? Honourable Lavern King, we want to sit with the three ministers to put on the table certain concerns we have, work out a mechanism … when we could meet periodically,” Robinson said.
Robinson raised the matter of the “Go public! Fund education”, a global campaign launched in 2023 by Education International, in which education unions around the world are joining forces to build inclusive, quality public education for all.
Education International is a Global Union Federation that represents organisations of teachers and other education employees.
It is the world’s largest, most representative global, sectoral organisation of unions with more than 32.5 million trade union members in 384 organisations in 178 countries and territories, promoting the principle that quality education, funded publicly, should be available to every student in every country.
UNESCO, a United Nations (UN) agency, says education financing involves governance, legal frameworks, policies, mechanisms, and administrative structures that regulate how resources are collected, allocated, and distributed.
The UN agency says governments distribute these funds to different levels and types of education and to specific regions or groups, but how resources are distributed profoundly affects the equality of educational opportunities.
Robinson noted that the new Godwin Friday administration, which came to office in the Nov. 27 general election, has inherited from the previous Ralph Gonsalves administration an EC$3.5 billion public debt — a fiscal situation where the debt-to-GDP is 103% and 40 cents of every dollar must go towards debt servicing.
The Eastern Caribbean Currency Union has a target to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio to 60% by 2035.
“We want to deal with that too. Because that is important…” Robinson said in reference to the Go Public! Fund Education programme.
Robinson reiterated the importance of social dialogue, telling the Ministry of Education that the new ministers need to get to know the union’s perspectives.
“And then I’m getting some bad reports. I know they inherited a $3.5 billion national debt. That is why they should have met with the teachers’ union before,” he said.
“There are some schools that don’t have chalk and toilet paper. Remember, we put it in a context, that they inherited certain things.”
Robinson highlighted a number of issues, such as the woodlice-infested search room at the Registry and the conditions of two secondary schools.
“I wrote the minister of education outlining about the New Adelphi Secondary School and the bat droppings.
“Bethel High School, no deputy principal and no senior teacher. And I know the minister of works (Nigel Stephenson), it is his constituency and he knows about the condition of the Bethel school where … the entire roof wants to be changed. It’s leaking. A lot of the classrooms inside, there are no louvres,” Robinson said.
The outgoing SVGTU president told the Ministry of Education, and the Friday administration by extension, “if you all don’t do these things, we’re not going to start on a good footing…
“That is why we want to meet you there and sit down and show you certain things which are outstanding. It’s to your benefit,” he also said.
Robinson suggested that the politicians are avoiding the unions now that the general election is over and they are in office.
“Before the election, they would call you and talk to you on the street and now you’re running… So don’t think because they give a VAT (free shopping day) and a bonus, you’re going to shut up the teachers’ union. It doesn’t happen so,” Robinson said.
Robinson said he had received reports of schools that have not received supplies for their school feeding programme.
This man has become the Union’s new bully, throwing his weight around to get what the ULP previously denied him. If we aren’t careful, he and the ULP hardliners will bring the whole government down.
Samo, I agree with you.. What was not given in 25yrs,,, the 30% promised in the road block revolution,,, Like they want it in 2-3 mths. SMDH.