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Minister Lazarus Dokora

Auxilia Katongomara, Chronicle Reporter
SENATORS have urged the Government to align the Education Act with the Constitution and do away with the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Dr Lazarus Dokora’s directive to abolish School Development Committees.

Moving the motion last week, Senator for Bulawayo Dorothy Khumalo (MDC) said the planned replacement of SDCs, with the School Services Fund (SSF) will leave parents at the mercy of school authorities and affect the quality of education.

Senator Khumalo said her motion emanated from the 2017 Government directive for schools to close all SDCs accounts and remain with the SSF accounts.

“There comes my concern madam president, the 2017 Government directive. The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has all of a sudden decreed that all SDCs accounts at Government schools be closed immediately and the funds be put in the SSF fund which is controlled by Government only without parents.

For the benefit of the members of this august House, let me explain that before this new directive, there were two accounts at the schools — the SSF fund controlled by Government and the SDC account controlled by parents,” said Senator Khumalo.

She said the community elect people to run the SDC account after parents were levied following discussions at the beginning of the year or at an annual meeting.

Signatories to this fund were the head of the school, the deputy and the chairperson of the SDC and the deputy.

Senator Khumalo said with the SSF account, only Government officials would be the account’s signatories.

“Madam president, the other account at the school is called the School Service Fund. This account is under the Public Finance Management. This account is where the Government tuition fees goes to. The amount which has to be paid at the present moment in most of the schools is $10.

The signatories to this account are restricted to Government employees; the headmaster, his deputy and the senior teacher. No parent has anything to say in this account. Now, we are closing the SDC account where parents were involved and it is this account where they cannot sign or say anything,” she said.

The senator said she was concerned that the move will retrogressively impact on the gains made in the educational system over the years and result in the total collapse of the system.

“Now I therefore, call upon the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to; align the Education Act to the Constitution, cease forthwith the transfer of SDA/ SDCs funds to the School Service Fund; and formulate a consolidated Statutory Instrument to guide the operations of SDCs and SDAs taking into account stakeholders’ input,” she said.

Matabeleland South Senator Joyce Ndlovu supported Senator Khumalo saying with the new directive schools would not benefit much from their funds.

“Now, with this new development from the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education to take SDC funds to put them into SSF, things will not move well because the funds will be controlled. Government should see which place needs a class very fast and therefore those funds will not be used as per what the school would want them to be used for, if at all this is going to be done,” said senator Ndlovu.

@AuxiliaK