Keep publishing SEA results

THE SANATAN Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS), which runs several Hindu primary and secondary schools, has taken issue with a proposal by the Education Ministry to stop publishing the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) exam results in the daily newspapers.

The SDMS says the need for transparency trumps the right to privacy. Education Minister Anthony Garcia last week said no final decision had been taken and the ministry had received the views of various stakeholders with the need for transparency being weighed against the rights of the child and parents’ wish for privacy.

Parents have called on the ministry to stop the practice of publishing the results. However, the Maha Sabha has threatened to take the ministry to court if it chose not to publish. In a pre-action protocol letter sent to the ministry yesterday, attorney Stefan Ramkissoon said the sudden refusal on the part of the ministry to publish the results was unlawful, malicious and arbitrary.

In his letter to the minister, Ramkissoon said by doing so, the ministry was acting with malice and deliberate indifference to citizens’ constitutional rights in defiance of settled and indisputable law. Ramkissoon said the SDMS proposed to take legal action on behalf of its schools and the children who attend its schools.

The lawyer said at a recent meeting with SDMS secretary general, Satnarayan Maharaj, Garcia made "vague" references to the effects the SEA exam was having on children. But at this meeting, Maharaj pointed out that the right to privacy should not outweigh the need for transparency as this was not a privately funded examination.

Ramkissoon said there has been no proper consultation and accused Garcia of causing further anxiety. The SDMS gave the ministry until 4 pm yesterday to respond, promising to approach the High Court for an order preventing it from executing any plan to stop publication of the results.

Contacted for comment yesterday, Garcia told Newsday the ministry is now seeking the opinion of Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi on whether to discontinue the annual publication of SEA results which will be out by July. That decision was reached at yesterday’s meeting of the ministry’s Strategic Executive Team.

Garcia added, “We got the opinion of our own legal advisor today.” Asked if confidentiality was not just a legal matter but also a sociological issue, he said the ministry has also sought opinions from the NPTA, National Primary School Principals Association, Association of Denominational Schools and several individuals. (
Additional reporting by SEAN DOUGLAS)