Dear Editor – Sikaiana primary students find hard to enter secondary education due to high school fees.
There is a continuous big number of primary drop-out every year under the $200,000 allocated to school fees by the Hon- Prime Minister G. Darcy Lilo in the 2013 budget for 2014.
This is an ongoing obstacle to Sikaiana students for further education since independence. There is no option for parents to find any source of income out of a tiny Atoll with limit of food for survival only.
This a briefing short story reflecting to the 1950’s when diocese of Melanesian Anglican Church was in charge of some boys and girls schools separately in Solomon Islands.
The head of this Anglican Church at the time was the late Bishop Alfred Thompson Hill who was to us Sikaiana people a man of visions with God’s wisdoms and understanding.
He always visited Sikaiana Atoll and his usual strong advice to Sikaiana Chiefs and parents was that children must attend schools to be educated.
When the chiefs replied that parents could not afford school fees he at once recommended Sikaiana students free education throughout mission’s schools.
If the late Bishop A. T. Hill had vision this on Sikaiana students what about Govt of the day when there is no project at all Sikaiana to earn money for school fees?
Where is the $200,000 allocated to school fees? Please, we want thorough investigation on this.
John Tepala
Lunga
