Wakapoa Secondary in need of teachers – Councillor

Education, consider the most precious gift, is difficult to access in the Amerindian community of Wakapoa, Lower Pomeroon, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam). This is according to People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP\C) councillor Brian Basil, who during a recent statutory meeting in Region Two, said that secondary school children in the area are left to suffer as many parents cannot afford to send them to school due to the exorbitant fees charged by the captains of the David G boats.

Basil, who is Chairman of the Hinterland Affairs Committee in the Region, said that the Toshao of the community complained to him about the inadequacy of teachers at the school. He said the school’s syllabus is lagging and so are the children in their education.
The councillor informed his fellow colleagues that several requests were made to the Department of Education about filling the school vacancies, noting that to date nothing has been done, and often the children are left unattended in their classrooms due to the lack of teachers.
In addition, parents were asked to pay $1000 weekly to transport their children to school with the boats which were gifted by President David Granger to the Pomeroon communities.
He also informed the council that presently the dormitory at Wakapoa is incomplete due to the faulty works done by the contractor. He argued that children are suffering and something really needs to be done.
Government Councillor, Naithram, commenting on the issue said that he recently visited the dormitory at Wakapoa and he was shocked to see the ‘faulty’ works that were done by the contractor.
Naithram questioned why children have to suffer due to negligence by an administration. He also informed the council that the contractor was previously blacklisted. He therefore called on REO, Rupert Hopkinson to intervene to resolve the issue of substandard works.