SISTERS ROAD AC GETS NEW SCHOOL

CCNTV6

​Less than two years after being closed due to structural concerns, the Sisters Road Anglican Primary School in New Grant, Princes Town was officially commissioned on Friday.  According to the Education Minister, it cost taxpayers close to seven million dollars and will house about 100 students from the community, come Monday.  Reporter Cindy Raghubar-Teekersingh was at the opening on Friday and tells us more.

Transcript

00:00Approximately 100 students from the community of Sisters Road, Newgrant, Princess Town will

00:07enter a newly constructed school when the new school year begins on Monday.

00:12The children were displaced about two years ago when the school was closed due to structural

00:17issues.

00:18The infants to Standard 3 classes were accommodated at the Newgrant Government Primary School

00:24while children in Standards 4 and 5 were housed at the Torib Trace Presbyterian School.

00:29At the Ministry of Education, we believe in equity and educational opportunity.

00:37And from time to time, these things happen.

00:40And what happened at Sisters Road is not singular.

00:44We have other schools where we have difficulties with the building and we have to seek different

00:50accommodations for the children.

00:52The Minister told those gathered for the commissioning of the rebuilt school that it costs around

00:57$6.9 million.

00:59She was scheduled to also attend the commissioning of the Holy Cross Anglican Primary School

01:04in Marabella and the commissioning of refurbishment work on St. George's College in Barataria.

01:10MP for Princess Town, Bari Padarath, who was at the first event, expressed concern about

01:16the government's failure to rebuild the Princess Town Presbyterian No. 1 school, which remains

01:22on a shift system with the Presbyterian No. 2 school for almost 10 years now.

01:28We have government approval to do a school at Presbyterian No. 1, and so that's on our

01:33agenda for the next school, yes, to start construction.

01:37This has been over nine years we've been clamouring for this Princess Town No. 1 school.

01:42Her announcement to members of the media that the school will be reconstructed within the

01:46next financial year, I have no faith, I have no trust, I have no confidence in the Minister

01:50of Education because we have gotten that commitment before and we have seen little or no results

01:55at all.

01:56Meanwhile, Minister Gatsby-Dolley says she has no reports on any school that will remain

02:01closed on Monday as teams are continuing work to ensure that those with complaints are addressed

02:08by that time.

02:09At this point in time, I have no indication that there isn't a school that is going to

02:13be open, but I can tell you that problems at schools happen every single day.

02:17As of now, we are having new reports of schools having issues, some of them still overflowing

02:22from rainfall and so on, so as of now we are working on all complaints that have come to

02:26us.

02:27Hundreds of complaints come to us over the time, and right now we have about 60-something

02:32schools closed.

02:33Cindy Raghuban Tikasingh, TV6 News.

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