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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
Following a meeting with school administration and union representatives, Minister for Grand Bahama Dr. Michael Darville (right), surveying additional damage to the school caused by recent heavy rains. From left: Micah Hepburn, President of the Alumni Association at Eight Mile Rock; Kevin Ferguson Sr., Acting PTA president; and School Principal Ivan Butler. (BIS Photo/Vandyke Hepburn)
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FREEPORT, Grand Bahama -- Minister for Grand Bahama, the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville held an emergency meeting Thursday with the Principal of Eight Mile Rock, along with Mary Cooper, District Superintendent for Education, Union Representatives, the school’s shop steward and other officials to defuse a potentially volatile situation that brewed as a result of ‘miscommunication.’
A small group of parents led a march to the school early on Thursday morning, November 17, to protest what they called “deplorable conditions” under which they said their children had to attend school. The demonstration was a follow-up to a decision made on Wednesday night during a heated meeting for parents of the school.
Minister for Grand Bahama the Hon. Michael Darville met with school officials
for some two hours, after which the parties emerged from the meeting satisfied that the matters at hand had been properly addressed.
“There was a slight miscommunication which has now been resolved,” Minister Darville told the media once he emerged from the meeting in the school’s Administration office. “The purpose of the meeting was to clearly outline the parameters of the way forward for the restoration of the Eight Mile Rock High School,” he said.
“I want to reassure the residents that the government is very sensitive to the issues as it relates to what is happening at our schools here on Grand Bahama.”
Minister for Grand Bahama, the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville (center) addresses the media following a lengthy meeting with the Principal, teachers and Union representatives at the Eight Mile Rock High School on Thursday morning. The meeting came about as a result of protest that was spurred by parents on unfinished repairs at the school. At right is Mary Cooper, District Education Superintendent (Northern Bahamas) and at left, Principal of Eight Mile Rock High School, Ivan Butler. (BIS Photo/Vandyke Hepburn)
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Minister Darville noted that the progressive uproar by parents about conditions at the school was based on miscommunication and wrong information circulated. Much of the fury arose because word had begun to circulate suggesting that since the Grand Bahama Container Port had made a donation to the Eight Mile Rock High School for repairs, the work should have been completed by now.
“I want to make it clear that at no time did the government have access to the funding,” said Minister Darville. “The funding was the result of a donation from the Container Port and the Hutchison Whampoa Group of Companies.
“Once the contract was signed and the requirements of the contract were satisfactory to the Hutchison Group of companies, they were the ones who would mobilize the contractor. And so it is Hutchison who is responsible for paying the contractor and the gift from them is being controlled by that corporation.”
Minister Darville noted that the Grand Bahama Container Port made a very generous donation to the Eight Mile Rock High School, as well as to the Martin Town Primary School for repairs to those schools in the wake of Hurricane Matthew.
As a result, a contract was awarded to Mr. Cartwright Jones to carry out repairs at the school and that contract was activated from November 11. The proposal for that contract was forwarded to the Container Port, which had responsibility for issuing the funds to carry out the work.
“Subsequent to the release of the contract, Grand Bahama suffered some incumbent weather with rain and some additional issues were brought to my attention, as well as to the attention of the District Superintendent, Mrs. Mary Cooper,” said Minister Darville.
“There is some additional work that needs to be done at the school and Mr. Farrington is now scoping those works and that additional funding will be coming from NEMA, which is under the government’s control.”
As far as repairs to all of the other schools on the island is concerned, Minister Darville said that most of those contracts have been awarded and he said that the government is moving swiftly to get the much-needed school repairs underway as soon as possible.
“I would like to thank all of the teachers, parents and everyone who have been instrumental in helping the school term to continue despite the challenges that exist on Grand Bahama,” added Minister Darville.
“We have spoken extensively about some of the logistics on how a contractor would be able to continue carrying out repairs while the kids are here on the school campus. Safety is paramount and so we anticipate that the bulk of the work will be done on the weekend so that we can expedite the process and create a degree of normalcy, which is essential for education and for our kids and teachers to be in a comfortable environment.
“I’ve spoken with the Minister of Education and our focus right now is on repairing the schools and not be distracted from different other agendas that may exist. Our focus right now is to make sure that our kids are secured and to make sure that our teachers are in a comfortable and safe environment.”
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