North Andros Member of Parliament Vincent Peet criticized Minister of Education Desmond Bannister and the government yesterday for failing to ensure that the Lowe Sound Primary School was ready to properly accommodate students at the start of the new school year.
Peet said while most schools in his constituency are in good condition, the Lowe Sound Primary School is in an unacceptable state. He said two trailers used to accommodate some students are not ready.  As a result, students are crammed into classrooms Peet declared.He said in a statement yesterday the doors of the two trailers need to be retiled, and the retiling did not commence until Sunday.  One trailer is completely untouched and work on the other is incomplete, according to Peet.
He further noted that the main buildings of the school does not have enough space to accommodate all students, and the two trailers that were introduced on the school's compound a few years ago have acted as temporary classrooms for some students.
A new primary school was scheduled to be built in 2007, but these plans were put on hold when the government changed that year, Peet claimed.
Both trailers were to be tiled during the summer but tiling only began on Sunday evening, the night before school opened, according to the MP.
"I am calling upon the minister of education and government to ensure that [these repairs are completed], and I am condemning them for not having the repairs done in time to meet the opening of school."
In a statement yesterday, Bannister said he was "extremely disappointed" that repairs to the trailers "in which Mr. Peet had been responsible for putting the children of Lowe Sound in" were not completed before school opened.
"In these circumstances, I have asked for an explanation from the officers who are responsible," Bannister said.
Peet said there are also staff shortages at Lowe Sound Primary School and North Andros High School.
Bannister explained that the Ministry of Education sought to engage a number of teachers this summer.  He said several declined to take appointment in North Andros and the Ministry of Education declined to hire them.
The teachers who were hired in their place are on their way to North Andros.
Peet also claimed yesterday that Stanyard Creek Primary School was without basic teaching and cleaning supplies.
But Bannister said "this is a disappointing fabrication by one who knows better."
"In visiting classrooms at eight schools, I met students diligently at work on their first day at shool and teachers eagerly teaching," the minister said.
"It is therefore disappointing that Peet sought to focus on the negative rather than the hundreds of positive stories coming out of North Andros schools yesterday."

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