Some parents and guardians of children enrolled at Mlich Primary School in Karoi have accused the school’s headmaster, a Mr Raisi of sending children away from school thereby barring them from attending lessons over the non-payment of fees and are demanding that he be transferred from the school.
Parents who spoke to Pindula News alleged that Raisi had also been sending away learners who are under the the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM).
BEAM was established in 2001 by the government of Zimbabwe as part of the Enhanced Social Protection Programme (ESPP) the objective was to provide basic education to everyone in Zimbabwe including students that could not afford the school fees such as Orphans and vulnerable children (OVC).
The parents raised the matter after Primary and Secondary Education Minister Torerai Moyo recently warned school authorities that sending away learners for non-payment of fees is a criminal offence and those who do so risk being prosecuted for violating children’s right to education.
However, authorities at the school denied the allegations saying they only asked learners to inform parents with arrears to come to the school to negotiate payments.
One of the parents who spoke to this publication admitted that the school head had indeed asked parents to negotiate payment plans but that was after children had been barred from attending lessons.
It also emerged that Mlich Primary School doubled school fees from US$15 per term to US$30 per term which has resulted in about half of the parents failing to pay fees on time.
Authorities at the school, which has an enrolement of 572, said some parents are yet to pay the first term fees which has negatively affected the school’s operations.
The 176 learners who are under BEAM have never been sent away and are attending lessons as usual according to sources at the school. Said a source:
<blockquote>
No learner under BEAM has been sent away. Even those who are not under BEAM have not been sent home but it was resolved that their parents should come to the school to negotiate a payment plan especially those whose tuition arrears have accumulated over several terms. Payments plans, however, have nothing to do with those under BEAM.
</blockquote>
Another parent with a child at the school said Raisi bragged that he will continue sending the children away saying “nothing will happen to me”.
Responding to legislators in the National Assembly during a question and answer session just over two weeks ago, Minister Moyo said some schools were barring learners under BEAM from attending lessons. He said:
<blockquote>
We are using a Statutory Instrument of 2000 which imposes penalties for sending children away from school.
The school head can be charged for breaching the children’s right to education.
Should anyone hear of any school still sending children away from school, please quickly let us know.
</blockquote>
Moyo said that instead of sending away learners over the non-payment of school fees, Moyo said authorities should first engage parents and guardians.
Moyo also implored parents and guardians who can afford to pay fees to do so for the smooth running of the institutions.
More: <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

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