LEADER of the Opposition Andrew Holness says that the reference by Minister of Education Ronald Thwaites to some students as “leggo beasts” was reprehensible.

“It is a dangerous thing for a minister of education to say that children who are not under parental supervision and guidance should not be sent to school,” Holness told the press, on Saturday, after meeting with Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) caretaker/candidates at Belmont Road in Kingston.

“That statement is reprehensible and should be withdrawn by the minister because it sends a signal to schools now that, if I have a child in my school whose behaviour is beyond what is considered normal, then that child should not be allowed into the school: It is dangerous,” he insisted.

Holness was referring to a statement made by Thwaites at last week’s Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA) annual conference in St James that parents must not send their ‘leggo beast children’ to school and expect teachers to provide behaviour modification.

Thwaites also said that it is time for Jamaican teachers to aspire to the highest standards of professionalism, and insulate themselves from the falling standards “which have infiltrated many parts of the Jamaican society”.

But, Holness said that the Education Act requires that every child in Jamaica must be given access to education.

“In fact, the children who need the education most are those who are having problems. What the minister should be saying is that, he is going to improve the ability of the schools to address behavioural issues and behavioural modifications,” the Opposition leader stated.

“When I was minister, I invested quite a bit in improving the capacity and ability of schools to deal with children who have behavioural problems. We invested over

$40 million in building a facility to take care of children whose behaviour was beyond the capacity of the school to manage,” he said.

Holness made the statement during a press briefing following his meeting with 34 caretaker/candidates, including 22 new candidates.

Some of the new JLP candidates, including Dr Norman Dunn (South Eastern St. Mary) and Omar Frith (North West Manchester), expressed disgust with some of the labels being used by Government ministers and MPs to describe supporters of the Opposition party and the public in general at the briefing which followed the meeting.

“This kind of politics is not what we want to support in building a new Jamaica,” Dr Dunn said.