The sacking of the Chairman School Board at Dunrobin Primary School by the Ministry of Education is commendable and sends a strong signal of zero tolerance to other School Boards that continue to defy the Ministry’s legitimate directive.
Chairmen of School Boards need to understand that they are not intended to be entities that rule by oligarchy, but they are responsible, accountable, and report to the Minister of Education by whom they are appointed.
For far too long, certain Chairmen of School Boards – including the Chairman School Board at Beersheba Primary School (Government Leased), New Market, Saint Elizabeth – have repeatedly defied and refused to carry out legitimate directive that the Ministry of Education has given to them. There are three possible reasons that the Ministry’s directive have been repeatedly defied and scoffed at by certain Chairmen of School Boards.
First, the existence of strong religious ties and alliance between the Chairmen of School Boards and Principals – particularly in Church controlled School Boards – puts Chairmen in the position where altruism and loyalty to Principals of like religious faith take pre-eminence over the Ministry of Education.
Second, there is very little independence that is demonstrated by Chairmen of School Boards who tend to depend on Principals for guidance and direction in day to day management and administration of schools. Case in point; Chairmen of School Boards were recently summoned to attend a meeting in Mandeville where they were made aware of their responsibilities to hold Principals responsible and accountable. Chairmen of School Boards brought Principals with them to the meeting although the Principals were not summoned to attend the meeting. Consequently, if there are Principals who practice autocratic, dictatorship, totalitarian, draconian, and demagoguery management style, because of Chairmen dependence on these Principals who in essence are just veneer for what the wider community know is taking place in the schools, Principals are never held responsible and accountable by Chairmen.
Third, Chairmen of School Boards usually take very little or no interest in Parent Teachers Association (PTA) that are often manipulated by Principals as their power bases in their divide, rule, and conquer management style. Consequently, Presidents of PTA’s who are appointed as members of School Boards by the Minister of Education and on whom Chairmen of School Boards should rely on to assist them in objective management of schools, often become puppets of principals and a charade.
It is hoped that the Minister of Education who personally signed the letter that sacked the Chairman of Dunrobin Primary School, will bring other Chairmen of School Boards who insist in continuing oligarchy rule whereby they defy and scoff at legitimate directives from the Ministry of Education under his radar with a view to firmly demonstrate his Ministry’s zero tolerance to this illicit incomprehensible practice. It is also hoped that in doing so, the Minister will take swift appropriate action to sack those involved. This is what stakeholders in various school communities are asking for and nothing less.
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