The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

MEMBERS of the Bahamas’ Union of Students said yesterday they were “not satisfied” with the outcome of a meeting with Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald.

The COBUS senators, with their president and about 50 students, marched to the Ministry of Education building on Shirley Street to protest the government’s proposed cuts to the College of the Bahamas’ budget.

On Tuesday, the Education Minister said COB has been asked to cut around $2.5m from its budget, while other ministries would be expected to cut 10 per cent from their budgets this year and 25 per cent in 2014.

COBUS’ President Ernesto Williams said while he understands where the government is coming from, he is not satisfied with the answers he received.

“After the open forum yesterday the students expressed their interest in the matter and so they agreed to walk down there with us. We had an interesting conversation with the Minister and his Permanent Secretary and it was interesting what we were made to be enlightened to. The main concern we had was in terms of the subvention at the college, what is indeed going to happen to it in terms of the government and the Ministry of Finance. We just wanted to get answers from the direct individuals,” he said.

“We are not satisfied, we understand where the Minister is coming from. He answered our questions but we aren’t particularly satisfied. There were times he just reverted to the press release, there were times he reverted to the Ministry of Finance’s letter. This is not the end product of what COBUS will do in regard to the entire situation on the whole. We still have a bit more ground to cover.”

One of the major issues for the students at the college, according to Education Senator Jan Turnquest, is the proposed tuition hike of $25 per credit.

She said: “Students were distraught that raising tuition fees was being considered. We personally don’t have a problem with the fees being raised but we prefer that they phase it in and get people prepared mentally so that they can plan for an increase in school fees. For you to just drop it on me and tell me this is what is going to happen for the 2013 academic year and expect me to come up with that money and I already have a problem paying school fees already, I think that is unfair. So if you can phase it in and prepare me for it, I think students will be more receptive to it.”

Mr Williams said in addition to many students not being able to afford an increase in tuition some feel it is unfair to have to pay more for “a poor environment.”

“Students also spoke to the fact that we might have been a bit more receptive to a tuition increase if the quality of service was good at the college, if the conditions we had to face and be in every day, if the things that we go through on a day-to-day basis were better,” he said.

“Because at this moment they are poor. The things we have to go through just to be here on a day-to-day basis are not good. We were not inclined to it because of the way they went about dropping it on us, if they were thinking of considering it, they should have included us in the process.”

COBUS is expected to meet with the senior administration at the college, including President Dr Betsy Vogel Boze, today to discuss the way forward.

He said after that meeting they will decide their next move.