The Education Ministry has today confirmed that the Principal of Ratu Kadavulevu School, Arvind Prasad will be relocated after a request made by him to the Ministry while the students who incited the protest that disrupted classes will be suspended..
The Education Ministry has today confirmed that the Principal of Ratu Kadavulevu School, Arvind Prasad will be relocated after a request made by him to the Ministry while the students who incited the protest that disrupted classes will be suspended.
The ministry confirms that students of RKS will resume classes from Tuesday 8th September while full investigations into the recent disruption of classes for more than 700 students continue.
Two important issues are being addressed by the Ministry, one is the allegation against the Principal, and the other is the breach of the ministry's Behaviour Management Policy by students.
The investigation against Prasad continues while a school is being identified for him.
The ministry says it has carried out an initial assessment based on which the students who were involved in inciting the protests will be suspended.
They will be provided with counselling and academic support during this period.
The ministry also says there is alleged involvement of staff in inciting the students and these teachers will be investigated.
Acting Director Secondary, Iosefo Masivue will oversee the investigations and school operations until a new Principal is appointed.
An expression of interest will be put out by the ministry as part of a merit-based process to select the best candidate.
The ministry reiterates that grievances must be addressed using the proper channel and not through methods which disrupt classes.
It also cautions students to refrain from such behaviour and not to be led astray by unscrupulous elements as there are consequences as per the Student Behaviour Management Policy.
The ministry also wishes to remind teachers to refrain from such activities and heads of schools to be more sensitive towards the needs of the students.
The RKS Old Boys Association supports the Ministry of Education’s decision to relocate the RKS Principal but does not support the decision to suspend the students that were involved in the protest.
This has been highlighted by the Association President Alivereti Yaya who says that these students were forced to do what they did because of the issues they were facing under the leadership of the Principal.
Yaya says they will now be asking the Ministry for the Association to help in the counselling of the students.
He says the Principal was always involving police in all the matters of the school and they feel some of the issues can be dealt with internally and this is where the Old Boys Association can help.
Yaya says this will also take away the tag of being a criminal for some of the students.
The RKS Student Council has claimed that the Principal has made a lot of changes within the school system like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
In the letter that was delivered to the Ministry of Education, the Student Council claims that some of the changes that the Principal made includes the removal of the RKS prominent competition known as the Sovanivalu, not allowing the school chaplain to enter the school premises, the replacement of their meke practice every Wednesday by a dorm level meeting.
The Sovanivalu is the house competition for most disciplined, best cleanliness and academic of the year.
The Student Council also claimed that the Principal had told them that by the end of the year, the school roll should be 500 and that is why some students were suspended.
They claim that their Principal has never had an assembly and that is why students who were playing rugby were suspended because it was not addressed in the assembly. The RKS Student Council claims that they have many food shortage complaints and when they had informed the Assistant Principal, he said that the Principal is looking into it.
They have also questioned in their letter if the Principal is also teaching any class as he has not been teaching as every teacher is being employed to teach.
They claim that the flag-raising ceremony that was done over the years has been removed and it has been done anyhow now. The council further claims that the Principal’s son has been told many times from the teachers to cut his hair but they claim he does not want to listen.
There are other claims that the Principal leaves his dog untied and it has allegedly bitten the Deputy Head Boy.
There are also claims that the Head Boy’s quarters has now been changed to the school security guard house and they are also saying that it is a sign of disrespect when the Principal is crossing the main ground in the car when no one is allowed to cross the ground without special reasons.
The council says RKS is just the same as living in a village and it has it’s by-laws which everyone must follow.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Education Rosy Akbar says the team that is conducting the investigations regarding the protest and allegations against the Principal met with parents of some of the students who were believed to have been in leading positions of the incident.
Akbar says she has also received an email from the RKS Parents, Teachers and Friends Association asking to meet with the Permanent Secretary and she hopes that their side will be heard as well.
Education Minister Rosy Akbar says their investigating team has received responses from the RKS Principal regarding allegations laid out in a letter by the RKS Student Council.
Akbar says they hope to resume classes at RKS on Monday but this will depend on the recommendations by the investigating team.
She says the investigations are led by the Permanent Secretary and Director Secondary Education.
Akbar says they are awaiting a response on the allegation about shortage of food which they are taking very seriously.
Akbar says she wants to make clear that they have not bowed down to any protest by closing RKS for one week.
She says what they have done is put the welfare of the students, teachers and the institution first.
Akbar says they wanted to prevent the situation from aggravating further.
Education Minister Rosy Akbar has urged the members of parliament not to get involved in the RKS issue and let the Ministry sort things out.
Akbar highlighted this in parliament and says they hope to resolve the situation by next week.
She says this started last Friday where the students decided to protest against the Assistant Principal.
Akbar says they sent a team to RKS and they had sorted this issue on Friday.
The Minister says now they are trying to ascertain what had happened over the weekend which resulted in the more than 100 students of RKS putting up a banner outside of their dormitory saying Remove the Principal.
When questioned by SODELPA MP Niko Nawaikula on what measures of discipline are anticipated to be taken on the RKS students that broke the law, Akbar says they will look at the outcome of the investigation and decide on what measures will be taken.
Earlier
Ministry investigates allegations made against RKS Principal by Student Council
We will hear both sides, it will not be swept under the carpet – Akbar
By: Iva Danford - 02/09/2020
Minister for Education, Rosy Akbar has today confirmed that a ministry team is now investigating allegations levelled against the Principal of Ratu Kadavulevu School, Arvind Prasad by the RKS Student Council.
The council says in the letter that they are appealing to the ministry for Prasad to be removed from his position.
Akbar says she received the grievance letter by the Student Council this morning and the ministry has also asked the Principal to respond to the allegations.
She says she did not see any academic issues addressed in the grievance letter and they will hear both sides of the story.
Akbar says they will complete their investigations, come to a conclusion and decide on the best way forward as their main priority is students returning to classes.
The RKS Student Council has claimed that the Principal has made a lot of changes within the school system like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
In the letter that was delivered to the Ministry of Education, the Student Council claims that some of the changes that the Principal made includes the removal of the RKS prominent competition known as the Sovanivalu, not allowing the school chaplain to enter the school premises, the replacement of their meke practice every Wednesday by a dorm level meeting.
The Sovanivalu is the house competition for most disciplined, best cleanliness and academic of the year.
The Student Council also claimed that the Principal had told them that by the end of the year, the school roll should be 500 and that is why some students were suspended.
They claim that their Principal has never had an assembly and that is why students who were playing rugby were suspended because it was not addressed in the assembly.
The RKS Student Council claims that they have many food shortage complaints and when they had informed the Assistant Principal, he said that the Principal is looking into it.
Ratu Kadavulevu School.
They have also questioned in their letter if the Principal is also teaching any class as he has not been teaching as every teacher is being employed to teach.
They claim that the flag-raising ceremony that was done over the years has been removed and it has been done anyhow now.
The council further claims that the Principal’s son has been told many times from the teachers to cut his hair but they claim he does not want to listen.
There are other claims that the Principal leaves his dog untied and it has allegedly bitten the Deputy Head Boy.
There are also claims that the Head Boy’s quarters has now been changed to the school security guard house and they are also saying that it is a sign of disrespect when the Principal is crossing the main ground in the car when no one is allowed to cross the ground without special reasons.
The council says RKS is just the same as living in a village and it has it’s by-laws which everyone must follow.
Meanwhile, the RKS Old Boys Association has confirmed that they support the Student Council in this regard and so does the PTA.
The Old Boys Association President Alivereti Yaya says they will be visiting the Prime Minister today to raise concerns about the changes that has been made by the Principal like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
The Ministry of Education has decided to close RKS for the remainder of the week due to concerns for student safety and school property as a result of a protest by about 100 students at the school.
Minister, Rosy Akbar says when you consider the extraordinary sacrifices that went into keeping Fijians safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing schools to re-open, closing RKS for the week was not an easy decision.
Akbar says they know the vast majority of RKS students would prefer to stay in classes and stay focused on learning, but so long as these protests pose a threat to student safety, that is not possible.
The Minister also urged parents to take this week with their children to re-affirm the importance of remaining focused on studying during the school term.
Akbar says they are trying to understand the students’ grievances.
Fijivillage is receiving information that some of these protesting students had said that they do not want Prasad as RKS Principal because he is Indo Fijian.
When we asked Akbar, she says she hopes that is not the case. She also says she hopes some teachers, officers and parents are not involved in inciting students to conduct this protest as the education of the children is the main priority.
The Minister also confirms that some parents wanted to take their children for the weekend last Friday and some of these students had not returned to school yesterday morning.
Minister for Education, Rosy Akbar has today confirmed that a ministry team is now investigating allegations levelled against the Principal of Ratu Kadavulevu School, Arvind Prasad by the RKS Student Council.
The council says in the letter that they are appealing to the ministry for Prasad to be removed from his position.
Akbar says she received the grievance letter by the Student Council this morning and the ministry has also asked the Principal to respond to the allegations.
She says she did not see any academic issues addressed in the grievance letter and they will hear both sides of the story.
Akbar says they will complete their investigations, come to a conclusion and decide on the best way forward as their main priority is students returning to classes.
The RKS Student Council has claimed that the Principal has made a lot of changes within the school system like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
In the letter that was delivered to the Ministry of Education, the Student Council claims that some of the changes that the Principal made includes the removal of the RKS prominent competition known as the Sovanivalu, not allowing the school chaplain to enter the school premises, the replacement of their meke practice every Wednesday by a dorm level meeting.
The Sovanivalu is the house competition for most disciplined, best cleanliness and academic of the year.
The Student Council also claimed that the Principal had told them that by the end of the year, the school roll should be 500 and that is why some students were suspended.
They claim that their Principal has never had an assembly and that is why students who were playing rugby were suspended because it was not addressed in the assembly.
The RKS Student Council claims that they have many food shortage complaints and when they had informed the Assistant Principal, he said that the Principal is looking into it.
Ratu Kadavulevu School.
They have also questioned in their letter if the Principal is also teaching any class as he has not been teaching as every teacher is being employed to teach.
They claim that the flag-raising ceremony that was done over the years has been removed and it has been done anyhow now.
The council further claims that the Principal’s son has been told many times from the teachers to cut his hair but they claim he does not want to listen.
There are other claims that the Principal leaves his dog untied and it has allegedly bitten the Deputy Head Boy.
There are also claims that the Head Boy’s quarters has now been changed to the school security guard house and they are also saying that it is a sign of disrespect when the Principal is crossing the main ground in the car when no one is allowed to cross the ground without special reasons.
The council says RKS is just the same as living in a village and it has it’s by-laws which everyone must follow.
Meanwhile, the RKS Old Boys Association has confirmed that they support the Student Council in this regard and so does the PTA.
The Old Boys Association President Alivereti Yaya says they will be visiting the Prime Minister today to raise concerns about the changes that has been made by the Principal like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
The Ministry of Education has decided to close RKS for the remainder of the week due to concerns for student safety and school property as a result of a protest by about 100 students at the school.
Minister, Rosy Akbar says when you consider the extraordinary sacrifices that went into keeping Fijians safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing schools to re-open, closing RKS for the week was not an easy decision.
Akbar says they know the vast majority of RKS students would prefer to stay in classes and stay focused on learning, but so long as these protests pose a threat to student safety, that is not possible.
The Minister also urged parents to take this week with their children to re-affirm the importance of remaining focused on studying during the school term.
Akbar says they are trying to understand the students’ grievances.
Fijivillage is receiving information that some of these protesting students had said that they do not want Prasad as RKS Principal because he is Indo Fijian.
When we asked Akbar, she says she hopes that is not the case. She also says she hopes some teachers, officers and parents are not involved in inciting students to conduct this protest as the education of the children is the main priority.
The Minister also confirms that some parents wanted to take their children for the weekend last Friday and some of these students had not returned to school yesterday morning.
Minster for Education Rosy Akbar has confirmed that government has not removed chaplains from schools and boarding allowances are still allocated in this financial year.
This is after SODELPA Parliamentarian Ro Teimumu Kepa claimed in parliament that chaplains have been removed from government schools.
Ro Teimumu had said that in 2018, 25% of drug cases in schools were in primary schools while 75% were in high schools.
She says proper and professionally skilled proactive intervention was not available in these schools because funding for school counselors have been ceased with no budgetary allocation.
Responding to these claims, Akbar says the government has only removed chaplains from its payroll and have negotiated with churches who have agreed to pay the chaplains for their presence in schools.
The Ratu Kadavulevu School’s Student Council has claimed that the school Principal, Arvind Prasad has made a lot of changes within the school system like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
In a letter that was delivered to the Ministry of Education, the Student Council claims that some of the changes that the Principal made includes the removal of the RKS prominent competition known as the Sovanivalu, not allowing the school chaplain to enter the school premises and the replacement of their meke practice every Wednesday by a dorm level meeting.
The Sovanivalu is the house competition for most disciplined, best cleanliness and academic of the year.
The Student Council also claimed that the Principal had told them that by the end of the year, the school roll should be 500 and that is why some students were suspended.
They claim that their Principal has never had an assembly and that is why students who were playing rugby were suspended because it was not addressed in the assembly.
The RKS Student Council claims that they have many food shortage complaints and when they had informed the Assistant Principal, he said that the Principal is looking into it.
They have also questioned in their letter if the Principal is also teaching in any class as he has not been teaching as every teacher is being employed to teach.
They claim that the flag raising ceremony that was done over the years has been removed and it has been done anyhow now.
Meanwhile, the RKS Old Boys Association has confirmed that they support the Student Council in this regard and so does the PTA.
The Old Boys Association President Alivereti Yaya says they will be visiting the Prime Minister today to raise concerns about the changes that has been made by the Principal like abolishing the tradition and culture of what RKS is known for.
The Ministry of Education has decided to close RKS for the remainder of the week due to concerns for student safety and school property as a result of a protest by about 100 students at the school.
The Ministry of Education says it has not received any valid complaints regarding the Principal through its established channels for handling concerns regarding teacher and principal performance.
The Ministry says no issues have been raised internally in relation to the Principal's performance.
Minister, Rosy Akbar says when you consider the extraordinary sacrifices that went into keeping Fijians safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing schools to re-open, closing RKS for the week was not an easy decision.
Akbar says they know the vast majority of RKS students would prefer to stay in classes and stay focused on learning, but so long as these protests pose a threat to student safety, that is not possible.
The Minister also urged parents to take this week with their children to re-affirm the importance of remaining focused on studying during the school term.
Ministry officials were at RKS yesterday to mediate and resolve the situation.
Akbar says they are trying to understand the students’ grievances.
Fijivillage is receiving information that some of these protesting students had said that they do not want Prasad as RKS Principal because he is Indo Fijian.
When we asked Akbar, she says she hopes that is not the case. She also says she hopes some teachers, officers and parents are not involved in inciting students to conduct this protest as the education of the children is the main priority.
The Minister also confirms that some parents wanted to take their children for the weekend last Friday and some of these students have not returned to school yesterday morning.
The Ministry of Education has decided to close Ratu Kadavulevu School for the remainder of the week due to concerns for student safety and school property as a result of a protest by about 100 students at the school.
Parents are advised to make arrangements to pick up their children from school.
The protest is alleged to be targeted at the Principal of RKS, Arvind Prasad.
However, the Ministry of Education has not received any valid complaints regarding the school principal through its established channels for handling concerns regarding teacher and principal performance.
The Ministry says no issues have been raised internally in relation to the principal's performance.
Minister, Rosy Akbar says when you consider the extraordinary sacrifices that went into keeping Fijians safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing schools to re-open, closing RKS for the week was not an easy decision.
Akbar says they know the vast majority of RKS students would prefer to stay in classes and stay focussed on learning, but so long as these protests pose a threat to student safety, that is not possible.
The Minister also urged parents to take this week with their children to re-affirm the importance of remaining focused on studying during the school term.
Ministry officials were at RKS earlier today to mediate and resolve the situation.
Rosy Akbar says they are trying to understand the students’ grievances.
Fijivillage is receiving information that some of these protesting students had said that they do not want Prasad as RKS Principal because he is Indo Fijian.
When we asked Akbar, she says she hopes that is not the case.
She also says she hopes some teachers, officers and parents are not involved in inciting students to conduct this protest as the education of the children is the main priority.
The Minister also confirms that some parents wanted to take their children for the weekend last Friday and some of these students have not returned to school this morning.
Ministry of Education officials are at Ratu Kadavulevu School to mediate and resolve the situation where some students are protesting to have their Principal, Arvind Prasad removed.
The Ministry has asked that students remain calm and maintain discipline.
It says schools are a place of study and the Ministry urges students to focus on what is most important for their future.
The Ministry also says they will not condone indiscipline and bullying tactics.
They have been advised that if students have a genuine issue they must follow the proper channels with the Ministry of Education so that proper investigations are carried out.
Parents are urged to ensure students return to school to resume normal studies.
Teachers are to ensure they remain committed to their supervisory and teaching duties.
Minister for Education, Rosy Akbar says the reason for the protest at Ratu Kadavulevu School yesterday by some students was due to an issue with the new Assistant Principal and the matter has been resolved.
Akbar says the student bodies had raised their concerns with the Ministry.
She adds while they do not condone students staging protests, the Ministry is ready to listen.
Akbar says she will receive a full report from her team on Monday. She has urged the students to follow the normal communication channels if they have grievances.
Meanwhile, Police officers were deployed to Ratu Kadavulevu School after Korovou Police received a call from the Vice Principal to report that some students had staged a protest against the school heads.
Spokesperson, Ana Naisoro says Police were there just to oversee that nothing got out of hand and by the evening, things had returned to normal.
Naveel/Vijay/ Pratika
Police officers have been deployed to Ratu Kadavulevu School after Korovou Police received a call from the Vice Principal to report that some students had staged a protest against the principal and other school heads.
Spokesperson, Ana Naisoro says this was after an alleged assault case involving two students.
The Deputy Divisional Police Commander Eastern is at the school to look into the issue.
Education Minister, Rosy Akbar says a team from the ministry is also at the school.
Akbar says the students have gone back to their dorms.
Police are still at the scene.
Stay tuned for the latest news on our radio stations
