Francis: It would be against the law

Minister in the Ministry of Education Dr Lovell Francis said yesterday when contacted for a response to Maharaj’s call on Tuesday at the Maha Sabha’s Indian Arrival Day celebration at Parvati Girls Hindu College in Debe. Maharaj called on the Education Minister to give the two incomplete schools, “Just as it is”, to the Maha Sabha which would complete construction using funds raised from donations. But yesterday Francis said, this is not so easy to do as easy Maharaj may think. “It is past obvious that the schools cannot simply be handed over to the SDMS.

And yes the issue is funding. This is what happens when one attempts to build schools without identifiable sources of funding as was done under the previous regime,” Francis said. About 271 Ramai Trace Primary School students were relocated to the Hanuman Milan Mandir at Penal Rock Road, Penal in 2015 to accomodate still ongoing construction at the school. The Parents Teachers Associations staged several protests last year demanding construction be completed.

Francis said the Ramai Trace Hindu School is 90 percent complete and should be finished before the end of the year. On the Reform Village school, the Minister said, “This is a work in progress.” Francis said the EFCL about $800 million to contractors and until contractors hired to build the two SDMS schools are paid, both cannot be handed over.

A press release yesterday by Education Minister Anthony Garcia, stated he was approached by a Maha Sabha board member recently on a proposal for the ministry to hand over the schools and he asked the board member to put this recommendation in writing so further discussions could be held. Garcia claims that to date no official communication has been received and so his Ministry is unable to consider the request.