Tweet
Skill, education levels too low - Davies
Published: Wednesday | July 21, 2010 0 Comments and 0 Reactions
Omar Davies. - file
DR OMAR Davies, the opposition spokesman on finance, says the State is committing a crime by allowing children who are unable to read and write to be promoted to high schools. "It does not make sense that we continue to do what we are doing, whereby we are putting children into grade seven who can't read. We are moving them up because of their age.
It is criminal, it is wrong, and we cannot do that because we are going to condemn those youths," Davies said on Sunday, while addressing party supporters at the constituency conference of East Kingston and Port Royal at Vauxhall High School.
"If you think that raiding Tivoli or raiding any inner-city community solves the problem, and more persons are graduating from [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]high [COLOR=blue! important]school[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] who can barely read and write and with no skills, you are fooling yourself," Davies added.
The former finance minister signalled that a future People's National Party (PNP) administration would invest more in early childhood and primary education, as a means of moving the country forward.
"PNP government have this problem where everything is a priority. That cannot operate the next time around," Davies said.
He warned Comrades that a ballooning national [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]debt[/COLOR][/COLOR], and restrictions from the International Monetary Fund on government spending would not be binding constraints on the ability of his party to implement progressive programmes if the PNP is elected.
"If you look at the performance of the Jamaican economy, a major problem is that our levels of skill, our levels of [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]education[/COLOR][/COLOR], are too low to compete, not even in the Caribbean much less worldwide," he said.
daraine.luton@gleanerjm.com
Published: Wednesday | July 21, 2010 0 Comments and 0 Reactions
Omar Davies. - file
DR OMAR Davies, the opposition spokesman on finance, says the State is committing a crime by allowing children who are unable to read and write to be promoted to high schools. "It does not make sense that we continue to do what we are doing, whereby we are putting children into grade seven who can't read. We are moving them up because of their age.
It is criminal, it is wrong, and we cannot do that because we are going to condemn those youths," Davies said on Sunday, while addressing party supporters at the constituency conference of East Kingston and Port Royal at Vauxhall High School.
"If you think that raiding Tivoli or raiding any inner-city community solves the problem, and more persons are graduating from [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]high [COLOR=blue! important]school[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] who can barely read and write and with no skills, you are fooling yourself," Davies added.
The former finance minister signalled that a future People's National Party (PNP) administration would invest more in early childhood and primary education, as a means of moving the country forward.
"PNP government have this problem where everything is a priority. That cannot operate the next time around," Davies said.
He warned Comrades that a ballooning national [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]debt[/COLOR][/COLOR], and restrictions from the International Monetary Fund on government spending would not be binding constraints on the ability of his party to implement progressive programmes if the PNP is elected.
"If you look at the performance of the Jamaican economy, a major problem is that our levels of skill, our levels of [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]education[/COLOR][/COLOR], are too low to compete, not even in the Caribbean much less worldwide," he said.
daraine.luton@gleanerjm.com
Comment