SASCHA WILSON
Police officers are at Claxton Bay Junior Anglican School where parents and students are protesting over government's failure to fix their school.
With the road blocked with debris, parents and students armed with placards shouted:
"We need we school right now! We need education right now!"
A parent explained that four years ago, the school building in Claxton Bay was shut down due to infrastructural issues and the children were relocated to a school in Marabella.
A young boy holds up a placard that reads: "We no longer want transport. We want our school fixed", during the protest staged at the Claxton Bay Junior Anglican School, on Thursday 8 September 2022. (Image by RISHI RAGOONATH)
However, he said they have issues with transportation to get their children to and from school.
"Police children in school but they send them to block we for we to stop protesting, but we children can’t go to school," he complained.
Sending a message to Education Minister Dr Nyan Gadsy-Dolly, the parent said:
"Fix this! We want this fix now! Not another month. Not another year. This not costing no $32 million. This is no fireworks thing. This is education for the children. We want that fix!"
The parents complained that the Government had organised two shuttles to transport the children, but due to non-payment, the buses never showed on Tuesday.
Parents and school children protest for the Claxton Bay Junior Anglican School to be repaired, on Thursday 8 September 2022. (Image by RISHI RAGOONATH)
"Now we have two shuttle service running (but) the government did not pay no shuttle service. When the children return to school Tuesday morning, no bus running. We children have to go back home. What about parents who have two and three children? another parent complained.
The parent added: “We cannot pay transport to Marabella and come back. We done eh have work, the country so hard. Either we get a new school, or get the shuttle service running."
