Classes continuing at Pt Fortin East Sec

Classes are continuing at the Point Fortin East Secondary School. Parent Teacher Association (PTA) president Tafara Lewis on Thursday said while the conditions are not ideal, the focus is on ensuring that forms five and six students who will sit examinations soon, will not be inconvenienced.

She said classes have been happening at the school for the last two weeks. Lewis said form five and six students have been getting their labs and school-based assessments done. While electrical work at the school has been completed, she said there remains additional infrastructural work that needs to be done.

Lewis said the PTA did not get 100 per cent of what they wanted, in terms of repairs to the school being completed. But she added the PTA is hoping the remaining work will be completed on weekends and during the school vacation.

In January, the PTA had threatened to shut down the school if repairs that were promised during the Christmas vacation were not done soon.

Minister of State in the Education Ministry, Dr Lovell Francis, visited the school twice in January. Occupational Health and Safety Agency (OSHA) officials also visited during that month. TTUTA president Antonia De Freitas indicated that OSHA issued three prohibition notices about different parts of the school.

Francis said, “We have started making the repairs which can be completed within a week.” He added, “So we are working along with OSHA to have the prohibition notices lifted as quickly as possible.”

On February 5, members of the PTA protested outside of Point Fortin MP Edmund Dillon's constituency office. Dillon said Education Minister Anthony Garcia told him there was an electrical problem that would be sorted out by the end of the week. Asked if any direct communication between the ministry and the school would occur, Dillion said he would hope so but he could only say what Garcia told him.

Education Ministry officials have said between last July and December, repair works were done at the school. These included refurbishing staff washrooms; replacing guttering from Block C to Q; replacing the ceiling in Blocks P and M and the library; installing additional electrical outlets in the library and staff room; emergency work included cleaning and de-sludging the sewer; replacing sewer pumps; repairing the control panel; and repairing/replacing gas lines and gas taps.