A-G urges inclusive environment to help MOBILISE for Marist
The Attorney-General and Acting Prime Minister Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has urged the Marist Brothers Old Boys Association to have an inclusive environment to help in restoring Marist to where it once was. Mr Sayed-Khaiyum stated this at the Marist Old Boys ‘MOBILISE’ conference in Suva. He said that having an inclusive association will bring in a number of former students who have not been reached out to.
He said these are ones who have a lot of intellectual input and can provide resources for the schools. He said the only way to bring the Marist Brothers back to where it was and regain its momentum is to reach out to old scholars of the school.
“We need to rope in people and let them know that we are being inclusive. It was the motto of the Marist Brothers and some of us who were taught by the brothers themselves know this.
“It was the motto, to be inclusive,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said. Meanwhile, the Attorney-General said there are a number of fundamental issues that need to be recognised in order to bring Marist to where it once was.
He said there have been a lot of talks on what Marist used to be. Speaking about the importance of the budget consultation, Mr Sayed Khaiyum said the budget consultation sees universities and high school students voicing their concerns.
This, he said gives the Government the opportunity to hear from the young people on what they want, what situations they are facing and what their aspirations are.
He said essentially in a very short period of time these young people would occupy the space which the old scholars once did.
He also said there was a need to be able to understand that when Marist was in its early days, there were fewer schools in Fiji and today there is free education.
“It is an enormous shift in the education sector,” he said.