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One of the private education institutions in the country Maranatha Academy has suspended classes for form 4 students that it had set temporarily in Zalewa and Balaka following government’s warning against the move.
Government through the Presidential Task Force on Covid 19 announced last week a delay by at least two weeks in opening of primary and secondary schools in Blantyre and Lilongwe due to the Cholera outbreak.
The decision however did not go down well with most schools in the two cities, who described it as unfair as their fellow schools outside Lilongwe and Blantyre are learning.
Some schools such as Maranatha had started implementing alternative measures to keep their schools open such as opening temporary campuses in Balaka and Zalewa to enable form 2 and form 4 classes to catch up with their studies.
However, Ministry of Education in a statement signed by Principal Secretary Chikondano Mussa on Monday said the decision to open the new two campuses, was illegal as government was not informed.
Mussa therefore warned schools in Blantyre and Lilongwe against relocating outside the two cities in an attempt to escape a prolonged closure due to the cholera situation.
Meanwhile Dr. Ernest Kaonga-Managing Director of Maranatha Academy has described the situation as unfair to learners and education institutions in the two cities.
“We did this as plan B not that we have relocated to Balaka or Zalewa. This was just temporary otherwise our campuses remain in Blantyre. It is very unfair to keep these students idle while their colleagues from other districts are learning,” said Dr. Kaonga.
Source:MIJ
