Matric exam chaos in Omusati
Omusati matric pupils were left in a panic yesterday, when they were unable to immediately write their physical science national examination papers, because of a lack of equipment to perform practical tasks.
Some learners had to wait for other pupils from nearby schools to finish, so they could borrow their equipment, before they started writing.
This caused panic in the region, as the examination was supposed to kickoff at 08:00 for all pupils, but some learners wrote in the afternoon.
Omusati education director Laban Shapange confirmed the situation had affected almost all the schools in the region, and that it was not the first time something like this had happened.
“The company that was awarded the tender to supply equipment to schools could not deliver. The situation affected almost all the schools. However, some schools had extras and they had to borrow them to others,” Shapange said.
“I remember when we wrote biology last week it was also the same, but it was not as bad as this. This time it was too much.”
Shapange blamed the situation on government's bureaucratic tape, when it comes to paying contractors.
The ministry had previously contracted a reliable company to supply the necessary exam equipment to schools without challenges over the years, but due to a delay in payments, the company stopped.
“The ministry gave us a list of companies where we can procure from. It is now a lesson learnt that before we contact a company, we must first make sure it has the capacity to deliver without delays.”
Shapange said they managed to control the situation and in future they will make sure that schools procure some of their basic needs with the funds at their disposal, so that they do not rely exclusively contractors.
ILENI NANDJATO
Some learners had to wait for other pupils from nearby schools to finish, so they could borrow their equipment, before they started writing.
This caused panic in the region, as the examination was supposed to kickoff at 08:00 for all pupils, but some learners wrote in the afternoon.
Omusati education director Laban Shapange confirmed the situation had affected almost all the schools in the region, and that it was not the first time something like this had happened.
“The company that was awarded the tender to supply equipment to schools could not deliver. The situation affected almost all the schools. However, some schools had extras and they had to borrow them to others,” Shapange said.
“I remember when we wrote biology last week it was also the same, but it was not as bad as this. This time it was too much.”
Shapange blamed the situation on government's bureaucratic tape, when it comes to paying contractors.
The ministry had previously contracted a reliable company to supply the necessary exam equipment to schools without challenges over the years, but due to a delay in payments, the company stopped.
“The ministry gave us a list of companies where we can procure from. It is now a lesson learnt that before we contact a company, we must first make sure it has the capacity to deliver without delays.”
Shapange said they managed to control the situation and in future they will make sure that schools procure some of their basic needs with the funds at their disposal, so that they do not rely exclusively contractors.
ILENI NANDJATO
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