Education Minister Responds to Schools not Being Ready to Reopen

Patrick Faber

B.N.T.U. National President, Senator Elena Smith has come forward to say that a majority of schools across the country will not be ready to reopen their classrooms on August tenth, the date scheduled for the commencement of the 2020 academic year.  Several reasons have been cited, including a lack of financial resources to assist teachers in sanitizing and preparing their classrooms before then.  While Faber acknowledges those challenges, he is also on record stating that the school year needs to begin in earnest and that should there be a case of community spread of COVID-19 affecting schools, the plug will be pulled immediately and classes will be suspended. Today, he spoke on what lies ahead.

Patrick Faber, Minister of Education

“I’m not going to get into a quarrel with anybody who says that.  The truth is that there might be situations indeed that we are not ready for and, you know, there are a number of things that are happening.  Some point to the fact that the international airport will be opened just two days later, but the truth of the matter is that we have to move on you know, we have to be ready and I am giving my commitment now that should there be some kind of community spread of COVID, in the same manner that we are quick to open schools, we‘ll close it back down because the number one safety issue for us is safety.  And so, nobody needs to worry and to say well you‘re opening back the schools and so.  The minute we find out that there is some danger in terms of the fact that there are measures that we are putting in place, that they are not suitable to keep our children protected and healthy, those measures will be reversed.  So they have my commitment on that, but I‘m not going to get into any back and forth.  There must be a start and it may well mean that we can‘t start at the right speed but let us try to be ready and get some of the work done.”