Law gives rights to administrators, says Nava

THE Teaching Service Commission has urged district administrators to use the powers they have been given to investigate, charge or suspend teachers alleged to have committed criminal offences.
Principal legal adviser Joel Nava said Parliament had passed the law four years ago giving district administrators the power to charge offending teachers, but this was not being done.
“Under the District Development Authority Act, a district administrator may investigate and charge as well as suspend a teacher teaching within the district that the district administrator serves,” he said.
He said offences such as rape, sexual relations between teachers and students, adultery involving teachers, drunkenness within school premises, corporal punishments by teachers, absenteeism by teachers, use of obscene language by teachers, misappropriation of school funds by headmasters, damage to school properties and others must be reported to the authorised persons immediately.
“The charging and suspensions must be executed within the Teaching Service Act. After charging or suspending the teacher, the district administrator is required to serve all the necessary copies of the charging documents, including any investigation reports, to the chairman of the provincial education board,” Nava said.