SHP students stone offices and vehicles

By YVONNE HAIP
SOUTHERN Highlands provincial health and education division offices and three government vehicles were reportedly stoned as Mendi High school students went on a rampage on Tuesday.
They organised a protest march through Mendi town before fronting up at the education office to demand explanations after a change in the appointment of their school administrator.
The students reportedly stoned the glass windows of the two offices, as well as damaged the vehicles of the education planner, health division and another car.
After their demand was not met favourably, they returned on Wednesday to get a more positive answer but were told that the decisions of the provincial education board (PEB) remained and no alterations could be made.
These surfaced as a result of a recent decision by the PEB to appoint a new principal for the school and that did not go down well with students and the surrounding community.
The PEB, after acting on suggestions by the local community and its Unjamap Welfare Association over alleged misappropriation, asked the former principal Peter Olohand to voluntarily step down while investigations were carried out.
The PEB then appointed former deputy principal of Nipa Secondary, School Jimsie Sap, purely on merits to run the school.
According to provincial education authorities, this was not respected and another senior teacher, Alfred Nigel, who was posted to Pangia Secondary School, was called to step in by another faction.
That caused the problem.
The education authorities said the school could be forced to close if the problems continued and the students would be transferred to other schools.
The authorities said such changes in teachers’ positions were being made throughout the province as a result of declining education standards.
The authorities also called on factions opposing the appointments not to  interfere with the PEB’s decisions as it was the only authority responsible in the province for teacher’s appointments.