After a bitter observation made during his visit, Tony Mwaba decided to rehabilitate the 5 elementary school in the Lufungula camp and to equip the Naval Force with a modern school.

Alerted by the families of military personnel and police officers, the Minister of Primary, Secondary, and Technical Education (EPST) conducted an inspection visit on Tuesday, January 24, 2023, to the primary schools at Camp Lufungula and the Naval Base, which are in a state of severe disrepair. At the end of his visit, Professor Tony Mwaba Kazadi made a grim assessment and decided to rehabilitate the five primary schools in Camp Lufungula and provide the Naval Base with a modern school to enable the children of military personnel and police officers—who are entitled to free primary education—to study in good conditions.

The head of the EPST began his visit at the five primary schools in Camp Lufungula, in the municipality of Lingwala, where he inspected the buildings of Primary Schools 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Professor Tony Mwaba was astonished to find that none of these schools met the conditions necessary for effective student learning.

"At E.P. 5, we can’t even call it dilapidated. The building poses a serious danger to the students and could collapse at any moment. This is not an ideal environment for teaching and learning. So, a solution had to be found urgently. First, the relocation of these students to another nearby school, in order to give the EPST School Infrastructure Directorate the green light to intervene quickly to rehabilitate these schools and allow the children of police officers and military personnel to study in good conditions," the minister said.

The head of the EPST added: "At E.P. 1, 2, 3, and 4, we have serious problems with rainwater that still pools in the courtyard and paralyzes school activities. Someone has taken it upon themselves to build over the gutters, thereby blocking the flow of water, and the result is that water is stagnating in the courtyard. As a result, we have asked the Camp Commander to intervene so that a solution can be found," he said.

Furthermore, Minister Tony Mwaba strongly criticized the behavior of the administrators of these schools, who fail to maintain their buildings despite receiving all operating funds every month without interruption. On the spot, the head of the EPST asked the Inspector General of his ministry to launch an investigation into the allocation of the operating funds received by these school administrators.

The head of the EPST then visited the E.P. Force Navale in the Kingabwa neighborhood of the Limete commune. After a guided tour, Professor Tony Mwaba realized that this school does not exist; it has no official decree of establishment and was part of what was known as the “Coordination of Military Schools.” On site, the minister decided to issue the legal decree establishing this school and asked the National Director of SECOPE to take practical steps to identify the teachers who will be supported by the government of the Republic.

For the record, this inspection was carried out on the instructions of the Head of State, following a request made to the Minister of EPST by the families of military personnel and police officers who had staged an impromptu visit on Tuesday, January 24, to his office.

Professor Tony Mwaba informed the camp authorities present that these visits will continue in order to respond favorably to the President of the Republic’s desire to see all military and police camps equipped with modern schools, thereby ensuring the sustainability and consolidation of free primary education—a flagship program of his five-year term.

Christian BELLA