EASTERN PROVINCE

NYAGATARE — The Headmistress of Gakiarage primary school, Alphonsine Musabyayezu, was suspended last weekend by Sector authorities and parents over Genocide ideology.

The decision was reached at a meeting of parents and teachers, following an earlier appeal to Sector leaders. The move comes weeks after a Parliamentary commission released a report detailing prevalence of Genocide ideology in several schools across the country.

Following the report, the Minister of Education, Jean d’Arc Mujawamariya along with her junior Minister, Joseph Murekeraho were summoned in Parliament for questioning over matters related to Genocide ideology in schools.

In a petition to the Sector Executive Secretary, Geoffrey Mushaija, who endorsed the weekend decision, the school management committee had reportedly threatened to resign and withdraw their children from the school if Musabyayezu remained the Headmistress.

During the meeting, the committee accused Musabyayezu of traumatizing Genocide survivor’s pupils, theft of school food and irregularities in recruiting staff. They alleged that the Headmistress sacked and transferred teachers in the school based on ideological leaning.

They cited the suspension of the English section from the school, without any consultations with District leaders, as a clear manifestation of her ill motives. Her pleas that the school lacked Anglophone teachers to implement the programme were dismissed as lame excuses.

Sources allege that all the teachers suspended recently from the school were part of the Anglophone section, which raised concerns among local authorities.

Other allegations include creating divisions among pupils and teaching staff, and failure to stop pupils’ strikes, which were blamed on her management styles.

"The Headmistress is a Machiavellian; the character which aided her to blindfold the local authorities not to see her evil tricks. She has morally corrupted a number of authorities to divert them from taking objective decisions whenever they try to take action,” one of the members said.

The member added that the Headmistress often implements her individual decisions against the resolutions of the committee. It was also alleged that certain pupils are suspended from the school, without applying the right procedures.

Scores of former teachers recently suspended also attended the meeting and echoed similar allegations. Shortly after the meeting, Mushaija told reporters that the decision to suspend the headmistress was in accordance with the Education Ministry’s guidelines; article 24(7) giving Sector authorities the powers to take prompt decisions and give the report to the district later.

"After enough investigations I found it necessary to give her a provisional suspension pending District intervention. The parents are angry over the situation in the school administration; viewed as sowing genocide ideology among pupils and staff,” Mushaija said.

The committee and area local authorities insisted that Mushaija should ensure that the Headmistress is not reinstated to normalize relations with parents.

It also emerged that the district has already backed the decision pending the final approval by the district advisory council.

Sylvestre Mutabaruka, the District director of education however, said his office awaited the final decision to be reached by the District education committee, pending further investigations.

Ends