Former minister of national security and member of parliament for Manchester Central Peter Bunting is livid over the Government’s stance on auxiliary fees, saying that schools within his constituency had much to lose.

In a letter to the Jamaica Observer, Bunting said that Manchester High, de Carteret College, Belair High, and Bishop Gibson High — all located in his constituency — had high compliant rates which resulted in the schools getting solid support at the foundation level, support that could all evaporate with the new system as proposed by the Government.

“Successive members of parliament in Central Manchester have partnered with school boards, teachers, and parents to develop an educational infrastructure that must rank among the best in Jamaica.

“This is why I am so concerned at the plan of the minister of education to abolish auxiliary fees and replace it with the fuzzy notion of a “voluntary parents’ contribution. The issue goes beyond quibbling over semantics and potentially threatens the quality of high school education”, Bunting wrote.

“A system without auxiliary fees may serve to preserve the elitism which some complain about, since the so-called traditional high schools, which, by virtue of their developed “old boys’” or “old girls’” networks, tend to be effective in fund-raising. These schools will be able to afford essentials such as science and computer laboratories, as well as extra curricular activities that enrich the high school experience. The non-traditional schools however, have a bigger challenge to raise funds.

“A quality high school education is too important to be subject to political expedience, which I contend lies at the heart of the decision by the Jamaica Labour Party Government to remove auxiliary fees.

“In the seven Government-funded high schools in Central Manchester, the payment compliance rate for auxiliary fees was 80 per cent or better for most schools during financial year (2015/2016). This clearly reflects the belief of parents that there is value in our educational product and they are prepared to make the necessary sacrifice to invest in their children’s future.

All this is lost on the current administration, however, fixed as it is on outmoded concepts of a clientelistic model of government,” Bunting stated.