Dear Editor,
In an SN editorial of 24.10.06 and subsequent reports and letters, attention was drawn to the dilapidated state of our schools as well as the poor design and workmanship carried out by unscrupulous contractors and to a lesser extent architects/ engineers. Inspection of some works completed at various locations indicate that quality assurance supervision during construction and maintenance is weak.
In an SN article of 10.12.09, attention was drawn to dangerous dust emanating from the concrete floor of a newly constructed primary school at Aishalton in Region 9. The evidence suggests that the dust generated in the classrooms of this school was due to the poor quality of the concrete mix poured over the floor which was quickly disintegrating under use, causing a dust storm which had to be quelled by watering to prevent respiratory aggravation in some of the schoolchildren. The question being asked therefore is whether the concrete floor, and for that matter, the school was designed and constructed to generally accepted standards, or because it was a school in the hinterland region anything went. It was noted that the Ministry of Education provided funding to construct this school, and therefore it had the responsibility to ensure that its representative had the technical capability to provide quality assurance supervision during construction.
Education is given the largest budget allocation in the state, and Guyanese want to be assured that their tax dollars are well spent to educate their children who may be attending schools not only on the coastland, but in the remote hinterland as well. In a letter which was published in SN in October 2006, I had proposed that the newly appointed Minister of Education establish an Architect/Engineer Division within his ministry with responsibility for the design and construction of all schools and auxiliary facilities, such as furniture, equipment, lighting, laboratories, toilets, etc. The division should also be responsible for construction, administration and quality control. I believe that an attempt was made to establish such an entity, but recent events suggest that much remains to be done to have an effective division within the Ministry of Education design and construct schools to generally accepted standards.
Yours faithfully,
Charles Sohan
