“No surprise there. The Minister should have been honest all along.” PDM’s Deputy Leader, Hon Sean Astwood and Member of Parliament for one of the six constituencies in Providenciales today responded to the Ministry of Education’s Press Release advising of the delay in the opening of the Long Bay Hills High School.
The Hon Sean Astwood stated that, “Like many other right thinking citizens, the PDM wants to see the overcrowding addressed at the CHHS. While we did not think and still do not think the PNP Government’s vision fully addresses the overcrowding at CHHS , we too looked forward to the ease at the CHHS. However with our naked eye we knew that the School could not be ready for a September 7th start. The PDM raised this issue over and over giving the Minister ample time to be forthright with the people of this country. Our Party Leader Hon Sharlene Cartwright Robinson posed a question in the House of Assembly, which was on the Agenda of the House of Assembly for July 22nd, 2015 sitting, which was not answered by Hon Akierra Missick until the Meeting of July 29th, 2015, a mere two weeks ago. The Minister told the people of these Islands, from the Halls of Parliament, that the Long Bay Hills High School would be opened as scheduled. Our Party Leader on that occasion stated that it would be a “miracle” and the Minister stood her ground. While neither of us are contractors, any observant person could see the glaring fact that the amount of work left to be done could not be finished and completed with furnishings in the remaining 6 weeks to the start of the new School Year.
No contractor’s report was necessary to confirm what was blatantly obvious to the naked and untrained eye. As a result of this eleventh hour admission of the Minister of Education, the 180 students will now be subjected to attending CHHS in another school’s uniform, which could potentially isolate them from the rest of the student body. A student body that still will have to deal with overcrowding conditions and buildings that needs serious modernization. Once again the actions and decision making process of this government when called into question has been justified. Unfortunately it is we the people who end up paying for these costly mistakes. When it comes to our children’s education, we the PDM, expected better from the Minister of Education and this Rufus Ewing led Administration.
