WHP schools to come under close scrutiny

By JAMES APA GUMUNO
ALL schools in Western Highlands province will this year have to be more transparent by accounting for money spent, an official says.
Provincial assistant secretary for education Joe Yaga has voiced concern at some school boards of management and headmasters misusing funds.
Yaga told members of schools boards of management and headmasters in Hagen Central on Monday at Tarangau Primary School to witness the presentation of school uniforms, reading books and cheques by Petroleum and Energy Minister William Duma that starting this year he wanted all schools to practice accountability and transparency when dealing with money.
He said some school boards of management were sacked last year because they had misused school fees and subsidies.
He said he would not deal with those people again and wanted other board members and headmasters to control money properly for the benefit of students.
He said it was schools had their accounts audited to make sure all money was accounted for and used for its intended purposes.
Yaga said some people were taking advantage of schools not having proper accounting systems to misuse money.
He said church-run schools had proper mechanisms in place to monitor and control money.
He said government-run schools always had problems because state auditors never checked the books of the schools.
Yaga said this was a weakness in many schools, which spent unwisely but always cried for more.