Headmistress claims she was punched

THE female head teacher of a primary school in the National Capital District has accused a senior male member of the school’s board of management for punching her in the face during a confrontation last week.
The matter had been reported to Waigani police.
However, it was not known if police had acted on the complaint although it was registered last Monday morning. A lone duty officer at the counter could not provide any details when The National inquired at the police station after failing to make contact by telephone.
According to a written statement of complaint addressed to the Waigani police station commander, a copy of which was hand-delivered to The National on Sunday evening, complainant Felicitas Wambena, a married woman and head teacher of Ororo Primary School at June Valley in NCD, was punched in the face inside her school office by a senior member (named) of the school’s board of management, last Monday morning.
It was alleged that the attack was related to a change in the signatures on the school bank account operated with Bank South Pacific.
The board member was not happy that signatories on the account were changed without his consent as a senior board member.
Angry that the changes were made to the school’s bank account, the board member, a senior public servant, confronted the headmistress in her office and punched her in the face.
He had also accused Wambena of stealing school funds.
However, according to Wambena, she had changed the signatures following directives by the district education board.
She has also written to the employer of the accused and education authorities about the alleged attack, highlighting the unofficial status of the current board of management since it has not been officially approved by the district education board.
Attempts to confirm these claims with NCD district education services assistant secretary Henao Tau Nauna since Monday have been in vain.
Members of the district education board also could not be reached yesterday as all had returned home due to no water in the offices.
Meanwhile, Wambena has also written to her assailant’s employer asking him to advise the accused to stop meddling into the affairs of Ororo Primary School and return all school properties, including the school bank accounts, to the head teacher “in the presence of NCD officials, one or two community representatives and, if possible, a representative from your office” to resolve this problem once and for all.
The differences between the headmistress and the school’s board of management, particularly the senior board member, have been going on for three years, between 2007 and last year, over the use of school funding and subsidies.
Over the years, both parties had accused each other of misusing funds meant for school supplies, materials and general administrative use.
Funds meant for school subsidies were also affected.
Cases were registered and referred to the police fraud squad and education authorities.
However, police investigations turned up negative while NCD education authorities ruled in favour of the headmistress and ordered the board member to relinquish all school cheque books and other documents back to the school.
This angered the senior board member who confronted the headmistress in her school office last Monday and verbally and physically assaulted her.
According to media reports yesterday, the Ororo Primary School fraud claims were not isolated.
NCD education board representative Ouka Lavaki last week told a gathering at Eki Vaki Primary School that board chairmen and head teachers of seven primary schools in NCD would be referred to the police fraud squad for allegedly misappropriating huge amounts of monies belonging to their schools.
He said these funds were meant for the rehabilitation of schools and fee subsidies.
Lavaki said the board had investigated complaints from parents, teachers and citizens and “was surprised with what we discovered”.
He said the mismanagement of school funds had been happening over the years, badly affecting the schools.