RKS Temporarily Closes for A Week
The Ministry of Education has temporarily closed the all-boys Government boarding Ratu Kadavulevu School in Tailevu for the remainder of the week. This follows concern on safety and security of students, teachers and the school.
Parents were advised to make arrangements to pick up their sons from the school located in Lodoni, Tailevu North.
In a protest that started last Friday almost 100 students walked out of their class; it is alleged to be targeted at the principal of RKS.
The Ministry of Education did not receive any valid complaints regarding the school principal through its wellestablished channels for handling concerns regarding teacher and principal performance.
No issues were raised internally in relation to the principal’s performance.
“When you consider the extraordinary sacrifices that went into keeping Fijians safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing our schools to re-open, closing RKS for the week was not an easy decision,” Minister for Education Rosy Akbar said yesterday.
“We know that vast majority of RKS students would prefer to stay in classes and stay focused on learning, but as long as these protests pose a threat to student safety, it is not possible.
“That is why we’ve made the tough call to close the school for a week until we can guarantee that RKS students can go about their studies safely.”
Parents were urged to take this week with their children to re-affirm the importance of remaining focused on studying during the school term.
“From funding free education, upgrading school campuses, to implementing the Open Merit Recruitment and Selection Guidelines - our policies are all designed to deliver our students the highest possible quality of education,” she said.
“Good education and student safety will always remain our top priority, and for the sake of our students, we will thoroughly investigate the individuals behind this protest.”