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Tiny tot pols!

Muhammad Quamrul Islam
IT is strange that elections in selected primary schools were held on June 15 when annual students' union elections in universities and colleges have been in abeyance since 1991. One does not understand why elections were held in primary schools but not in universities and colleges. It would be proper if the government could also ensure students' union elections in universities and colleges.
The guidelines were issued by the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, whose officials say that it will teach democratic practices and develop leadership qualities in the children. The Parliament and political parties were involved in this scheme along with the Ministry of Education.
The guidelines on formation of student councils and elections say that students from Class III to Class V will be voters, and students of the same class will be candidates. The students will elect 7 representatives, who will be keep the school premises clean, arrange books and writing material, and be involved in hygiene, health, sports and culture, water, mid-day meal, receptions and entertainment.
The head of the Council will be elected from the 7 representatives in its fist meeting. There will be one meeting of the Council every month. No teacher of the school will interfere in the Council. In the first meeting, the Council will prepare a work plan. Help from the school management committee and local people may be sought to implement decisions of the Council.
The headmaster and assistant teacher will nominate a student of Class V to be the election commissioner. Students will act as presiding officers, polling officers and polling agents of candidates.
Elections will be held in 100 primary schools to elect 700 representatives. 603 representatives were elected on June 15 in 96 schools in 20 upazilas. In the elections, 1,612 candidates contested in 100 schools, out of which candidates in 4 schools were elected uncontested.
Elections were postponed at 5 schools in Double Mooring PS because of the Chittagong City Corporation election. At Ramu, Cox's Bazar, election was rescheduled in a school due to cancellation of nomination papers. In all these places elections will be held on June 22.
Student Council started as a pilot project for 100 primary schools, and the Primary Education Directorate has assigned 20 assistant directors in charge of 20 upazilas to implement it. It is not known if this project is funded from local resources or with funds from foreign donors.
It is not understood why our government authorities refer to the developed countries to justify their pilot project, as we are a least developed country. We cannot replicate their models because our culture, tradition and economic status are different from those countries.
What we should not forget is that we have a tradition of running good primary schools with the help of dedicated teachers and local people. Can't we work on that, instead of looking for pilot projects? We do not know what the pressing need for the experiment on tiny tots was, as there was no demand from guardians and students in this regard.
Guardians want an academic atmosphere in which teachers take classes regularly and do not indulge in partisan politics at the cost of studies, of which we have seen enough. Of course, there were strikes by teachers of community primary schools, but they were for salary increase; but after the said project was completed the community did not pay the teachers.
According to the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, elections will be held in all model primary schools next January. Elected representatives will be asked to distribute the 7 portfolios. The tenure of the council will be one year.
As this election was held in June will the tenure end next June? If the elections are held in January 2011, will the tenure end in January 2012? Before extending the project, we feel that the ministry should review the matter in entirety, including the points raised above. Let not our tiny tots suffer.
Muhammad Quamrul Islam is a political economistand columnist