THE SCHOOL construction saga took another turn yesterday after the Parents Committee of the Ayia Varvara Gymnasium in Zakaki, Limassol instructed the 700 or so students not to attend lessons.
The move for the cancellation came after certain protective measures regarding the securing of the site were not met, prompting the Parents Committee to intervene.
“We asked for certain safety measures to be taken as instructed by the government and when they were not enforced by the workers we decided to prevent students’ attendance from the school for that day,” said Yiannakis Lambis of the Parents Committee. “Those measures have now been taken, however, and the students shall return to school as of tomorrow.”
Lambis also pointed out the delays in construction proceeding at the school, “Lack of classrooms and delay issues were also behind the call-off. Only 30 per cent of the construction has been completed and whereas before it was going to take eight months to reach completion now it is going to take 18 months.”
In an effort to ease the tension in Zakaki, Education Minister Pefkios Georgiades told the Parents Committee that the workers “should work overtime and the costs be covered by the building constructor”.
Headmaster of the Ayia Varvara Gymnasium School, Panagiotis Konstantinou, believes that lessons could have gone ahead despite the dense construction work. “We believe that that the school could have functioned today with extra safety measures taken. The Parents Committee’s decision is what stands in the end.”
There are still around 40 schools in Cyprus and a few nurseries that will be under construction well into the school year. A decision from the Ministry of Education has instructed that the schools need become seismic proof and with just under 500 schools still to be worked on, construction around the island could take until 2008.
Speaking for the Ministry of Education, spokesperson Yiannis Economides last week said, “We knew that there would be a delay in the reconstruction of some of the schools. All teachers had been informed of the situation beforehand and protective measures have been introduced. We call on the parents and children to please be patient until the necessary construction has been completed.”
“If there is any danger at any of the schools, it should be reported to us immediately but I don’t believe there is any danger in any of the schools if protective measures are taken.”
