Outgoing minister unhappy with budget cuts in Education

The National Main Stories

By JINA AMBA
OUTGOING Education Minister Joseph Yopyyopy says some schools in the country did not receive full government funding last year and struggled throughout.
However, Education secretary Dr Uke Kombra assured schools that new Minister Jimmy Uguro was in dialogue with the prime minister to address the issue.
Yopyyopy said the government launched the tuition fee subsidy (TFS) policy last year and was to pay 63 per cent of the school fees and parents 37 per cent.
He said schools received the first term allocation but did not receive the rest.
“Last year, all schools did not receive the full amount of money, and they struggled right through until the end,” Yopyyopy said.
“From second term to the end of the term, schools struggled and they did not get any funding support allocated by the Government.
“The money disappeared somewhere, I don’t know.
“When we talk quality education for all, we mean quality education for all.
“If there is a budget allocated for the department to achieve quality education for all, we must see that through.
“One of my disappointments in 2020 is that K486 million was allocated for the 13,000 schools we have in the country and that is when we introduced the policy (TFS).
“When we launched the policy, the policy was for the Government to pay 63 per cent of the total government tuition fee free subsidy, so my call is, if the Government is serous to improve the quality of education to take back PNG, then put the money where your mouth is and when you put money in, don’t take it back out.
“It was a shame to see that there was a further budget cut in this year’s budget.”
Yopyyopy said the cut meant parents would have to pay more.
He said he wanted the Government to take that seriously.

6 comments

  • The former Education Minister’s call for government to take Education seriously and mean what it says is true. And I believe that is what the government is doing now. But I also think the government is right by asking parents to take some responsibilities to pay some portion of their children’s fees. It is common sense that the government did not decide for the children to be born initially. It is the parents, therefore, parents must take some responsibilities. This should caution future or intending parents to plan well, because the cost of living is not going to regress but however increase. Therefore, to educate a child in the next 20 years from Prep to University or College is going to be a fortune which parents and intending parents have to prepare for beginning today. I think this is what the government is indirectly doing which we all must appreciate.

  • Leaders be realistic with the people of PNG and tell the truth on school subsidies. If the Government does not have enough funds to sustain this two major systems health and Education on the free use of fees policy the Government of the day must be honest of their weaknesses and address the issue properly. Don’t raise false expectations to the general public and cause so much chaos in the system by running the system down.
    Be mindful when making critical decisions in running the country. The outcome of your decisions will be for the country’s good or for worse. When you Put your self motives and interests away and seek God’s Wisdom in making decisions for Public to benefit I believe that you will never go wrong.

  • Mr Yopyyopy!!! why are you now complaining to the government you were once with? Is that the genuine reasons that made you to move to the opposition or your move to opposition was base on different motives? If you were really serious about addressing this issue, you should have been part of the government’s team to raise you concerns in the haus man and not in opposition camp because what good will your comments do to impact government decisions.

  • According to the statement made by outgoing education minister is true. I think this is how the government does every year. If we want to take back PNG, they we must act according to what we say. This country will not develop in any how if our government changes.
    As I can see, there is no right leader in the government that’s why all these corrections are there.

  • Every single person pay tax in various ways, if the government promise us free education and free health care, I think we deserve it more than anything. We shouldn’t argue about that, employed people may not feel much burden because they have income on a forthrightly basis but feel for those remotely disadvantaged flocks, they suffered almost every single day, every opportunity is a dream to them, they die while trying to get their kids educated and it continues.

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