Sat...yuh win

[Habit7]

SAT BLOCKED BLACK CHILDREN
PNM MP reveals school principal's letter…

By by Ria Taitt Political Editor
Story Created: Nov 11, 2011 ECT
Story Updated: Nov 11, 2011 at 10:00 AM ECT
People's National Movement (PNM) MP Patricia McIntosh has slammed the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS) for its conduct at the Tunapuna Hindu Primary School in denying equal opportunities to pupils of different denominations, particularly black children who reside within the catchment area.
Speaking in the House of Representatives at Tower D, Waterfront Complex, Port of Spain, on Wednesday night, McIntosh charged that the Maha Sabha also sought to exclude non-Indian on-the-job trainees (OJTs), sent by the Ministry of Education, to work at the school.
McIntosh also criticised Minister of Education Dr Tim Gopeesingh for his "deafening silence" and inaction in the face of this glaring discriminatory "and unlawful" behaviour of the Maha Sabha which, she contended, "could alter", in a very hideous manner, the face of education in Trinidad and Tobago".
McIntosh, a former school principal, also identified Transport Minister Devant Maharaj as appearing to lend support to the Maha Sabha general secretary, Sat Maharaj.
To demonstrate her claim, McIntosh quoted extensively from correspondence submitted to the Teaching Service Commission (TSC) by principal of the school Sita Gajadharsingh Nanga, dated June 17, 2011, in which she complained of "numerous acts of intimidation and harassment" by the Maha Sabha board and several of its members. As a result of this, she requested a release from the SDMS board and a transfer to the Government Teaching Service.
"The Secretary General (Sat Maharaj) threatened to lock me out of the school for taking in non-Indian children who were within the catchment area. He told me, in no uncertain terms, that I must not admit black children into the school, and admission lists for both primary and pre-school are being scrutinised to ascertain whether I am following instructions," Gajadharsingh Nanga stated in the letter.
McIntosh said Gajadharsingh Nanga's letter stated: "The Secretary General was in an uproar because two of eight OJTs sent to the school were non-Indian. He threatened that the school keys would be taken from me because I was changing the culture of the school, and I was ordered to immediately get rid of the (two) OJTs".
McIntosh called for national debate on the role of religion, in respect of the exclusion of students or staff from certain denominational schools where those persons do not profess the religion of the particular denomination.
"Mr Speaker, I should like to know what is the ruling of the Equal Opportunity Commission on this matter? While the commission is busy pronouncing on Senator Devant Maharaj's allegations of racism in respect of grants awarded under the PNM administration, it would be interesting to hear what they have to say on this issue where, in certain schools, children are denied the opportunity of an education and workers, the opportunity of employment, based on the grounds of religion. This is in total defiance of the Equal Opportunity Act," she said.
McIntosh yesterday pointed out that Gajadharsingh Nanga also complained in her letter to the TSC that "she was expected to admit illegal Guyanese children into the school, and when she did not accede to this request, it posed a problem". Gajadharsingh Singh also stated she was forced to curtail the teaching of agricultural science in the school after being told by Maharaj that he was trying to "take Indians out of the canefield and I (Gajadharsingh Nanga) am trying to put them back in it".
McIntosh said since September 5, Gajadharsingh Nanga had been debarred from entering the school where she is still principal. She said on October 24, two school supervisors accompanied Gajadharsingh Nanga to the school where all three were denied entry. They summoned the police to instruct the security guard to allow them entry, and they also had to summon fire officers to break the locks of two doors to gain entry to the principal's office, the PNM MP said.
She said on the next day, October 25, they returned again and were prevented from entering the compound. "To add insult to injury, Mr Satnarine Maharaj, accompanied by Mr Devant Maharaj, Minister of Transport, visited the Tunapuna Police Station to press charges against the principal, the two school supervisors, the police and fire officers who had accompanied them to the school on the previous day (October 24).
"Mr Speaker, if this is not the height of arrogance and contempt for the State on the part of the board, then I do not know what is," McIntosh stated.
Contacted yesterday, Maharaj declined to give an answer to the direct question of whether he had accompanied Sat Maharaj to the police station on October 25 to take action against the school principal and others. "I have asked for a copy of the Hansard (of McIntosh), which was just e-mailed to me by my staff. I am going to look through it and see if it was factual, and if it is not, I will take the appropriate action. But I wouldn't want to comment until I have read what she had to say," the minister said.
McIntosh, however, said yesterday that Minister Maharaj's action (of accompanying Sat Maharaj to the police station) was in direct opposition to his stance in taking the PNM government to the Equal Opportunity Commission over the scholarship fund.
She told the House on Wednesday night that the Maha Sabha had arrogated onto itself an authority it did not possess. "Like all denominational boards, the Tunapuna Hindu Primary School is, indeed, by law, a public school. Denominational schools are funded by public money, taxpayers' money; teachers are paid by the State and resources are provided by the State", McIntosh said.
She said while the buildings that housed the Tunapuna Hindu Primary School belong to the board, the school itself, that body that comprises the students, the teachers, administrators and the school's operations, falls under the jurisdiction of the State.
McIntosh said despite the Ministry of Education's permanent secretary's instructions to the principal to report for duty at the school, the board of the Maha Sabha remained inflexible and resolute in its stance to keep the principal locked out.
"No matter what the ministry says, the board is unwilling to change its position. And I have to ask where is the honourable Minister of Education in all of this? He has been deafeningly silent.... The public has a right to know what action the Minister of Education intends to take in respect of this highly unlawful and untenable situation," she said.
She said according to the 1960 Concordat, it was the Teaching Service Commission, the agent of the State, that possessed the authority to appoint, retain, promote, discipline, transfer or terminate teachers and administrators, not the board. Furthermore, she said, under the Industrial Relations Act, the board has no power to lock out either teachers or administrators and prevent him or her from performing his or her duties.
McIntosh also quoted a letter from Maharaj, (Sat) in which he chastised Gajadharsingh Nanga for hiring a secretary "who is not a Hindu and does not respond to teachers and students in our tradition. In addition, you have permitted a number of OJTs who are not Hindus and do not conform to our dress code. We hereby advise that within two weeks, you send these persons back to the officers from which you accepted them. We view this as a serious breach of the Concordat and will take positive action if our instructions remain unfulfilled".
She noted that the letter also stated the school was the property of the Maha Sabha, and its control falls under the SDMS education board of management. "We have the right to ensure that the culture and religion of the school reflects the culture and religion of the SDMS," Maharaj (Sat) wrote.

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/SAT ... 65408.html

plz no racist comments on either side

[MG Man]

sat is an embarassment

[hustla_ambition101]

I see express has stopped all comments

[AllTrac]

this is all hearsay, no concrete evidence exist for those accusations

[RBphoto]

Gee Dem!!

[nemisis]

this is all hearsay, no concrete evidence exist for those accusations

This is Trinidad, the absence of evidence does not equate To innocence. Here it's guilty till proven otherwise....

[matthewmazda]

we cant just all live as one, all this race F@#CKing Sheit

[rfari]

i doh see the problem here

[ZeroOne]

Interesting.

If this is true........

[DevilZ]

plz no racist comments on either side

thas y d ched have 90 somethin view an 7 comments

[Cid]

Fat mahara.....Sat maharaj is one ah de most openly racist individuals in dis country......, why he still around ......i doh know....

[Bizzare]

this is all hearsay, no concrete evidence exist for those accusations

Yes, true.
However, this is Satnarayan Maharaj we talkin bout here !!!!!!!!!!!!

[SmokeyGTi]

To add insult to injury, Mr Satnarine Maharaj, accompanied by Mr Devant Maharaj, Minister of Transport, visited the Tunapuna Police Station to press charges against the principal, the two school supervisors, the police and fire officers who had accompanied them to the school on the previous day

well yes.....look ting!
draw allyuh own conclusions..

[DevilZ]

but seriously if yuh not a member of a certain religion y u goin to a religious school for? even if is to teach. I went to a religous school even though i had no particular beliefs or anything an i thought it was a pain in the ass with all the religious bullsauce they try to feed u...i have no problem with hindu schools for hindus...rc schools for rc folks etc... and non-denominational schools for the rest

[nemisis]

but seriously if yuh not a member of a certain religion y u goin to a religious school for? even if is to teach. I went to a religous school even though i had no particular beliefs or anything an i thought it was a pain in the ass with all the religious bullsauce they try to feed u...i have no problem with hindu schools for hindus...rc schools for rc folks etc... and non-denominational schools for the rest

Once the school private by all means go ahead.

[lostboys crew]

How many tuner went to a school belonging to the SDM. Well i attended 2 of their primary schools and all had a mix of all the various races and religions and this was like over 20 years ago.

So after all those years in power PNM now doing survey and come to that conclusion... them always looking for ways to make the PP look like they are a racial party when in fact it is the other way around. Just because a PP minster and Sat is family,they trying make the PP look bad.

N.B. all the afro children in my class where the favorites of the all the teachers and among the smartest in class.
Me ain't no fan of Sat...but i loved his granddaughters . All of his grandchildren attended my school, and his daughter was one of my teacher.

[DevilZ]

das d way to go yes wen i have kids is private non-denominational schools dey goin...

[toyota2nr]

Hmmm this is a real sorta technical situation. We all know from time to time Sat says stuff that is deemed or comes across as extremely racist but I think in this case we need to examine what was said.

Exactly what falls under the jurisdiction of SDMS needs to be clearly defined. If they were within their right to determine what is being taught at the school then regardless of how we may perceive it to be it's within their purview. In the case of the two OJT persons this is a gray area only because staff should be teach accoding to the religious requirements of the school but I am not sure if they were techers or just admin staff. In regard to admin staff or the secretary religion definitely shouldn't matter. The whole idea of responding in the tradition is bogus there's nothing wrong with 'good morning or good evening' Sat just trying to keep them out.

We will see how this turns out.

[TRAE]

so where the proof on this situation?

[AllTrac]

allyuh please doh be on Uncle Sat, 10Q.

So Sat NOW decide to discriminate? this present government and opposition forever pulling the race card to get support and votes, they know we are a country full of illiterates and they have been using that for years to divide us and win elections and they gonna continue to do it. MP Patricia McIntosh sounds like she just pulling any names in the PP that has the same last name as Sat and any name that sounds remotely close to an Indian name. Im sure she will achieve what she sets out to do. She doesnt know that Devant and Sat had a huge falling out recently.

[Crackpot]

plz no racist comments on either side

thas y d ched have 90 somethin view an 7 comments

Well then let me comment.

Ahem. The claims are evidenced by the corespendence between the principal and the Ministry as Macintosh is reading what the PRINCIPAL who herself is east indian wrote.

BTW is there any other Hindu organization in Trinidad??? Why don't they condemn his statements and say that SAT doesn't speak on their behalf The Muslims did it here with the Jamaat. Everyone clearly knows the difference. The Muslims in the Middle-East did it with Bin-Laden, so why the deafening silence locally.

Everyone lets this crazy old man speak for them and then says otherwise when they know they secretly glad about what he is doing and saying. Silence constitutes acceptance.

Anyone who disagrees should start by typing..." I dont agree with SAT", then continue.

[VexXx Dogg]

Sat should be shot with sheit and charged with smellin

[sinistersam]

there is always two sides to the story, and fortunately i also happen to know the other side. if anyone visits the school they would obviously notice that the alegations that the principle was making wasn't true, cause there is indeed a mixture of ethnic groups that attend the school. from what i know the principle had alot of issues with the staff and the PTA, she conducted her duties there in a dictatorship style. the teachers made numerous complaints to the board and when the SDMS board realised what a mistake they made by placing her there as principle decided to move her to another school. this didn't go to well, as the principal didn't want to be moved, mainly cause this particular school was one of SDMS "prestigue" schools.
so she fabricated alot of her allegations to create a defence and gather sympathy from the public.

[Dizzy28]

I went Tunapuna Hindu School

[stev]

sat is ah watery skunt.

i hate this dam racial thing.

[salvation4U]

lee d man alone

he done have one foot in the grave..

[rfari]

pics of grand-daughters plz

[hustla_ambition101]

there is always two sides to the story, and fortunately i also happen to know the other side. if anyone visits the school they would obviously notice that the alegations that the principle was making wasn't true, cause there is indeed a mixture of ethnic groups that attend the school. from what i know the principle had alot of issues with the staff and the PTA, she conducted her duties there in a dictatorship style. the teachers made numerous complaints to the board and when the SDMS board realised what a mistake they made by placing her there as principle decided to move her to another school. this didn't go to well, as the principal didn't want to be moved, mainly cause this particular school was one of SDMS "prestigue" schools.
so she fabricated alot of her allegations to create a defence and gather sympathy from the public.

Principal, not principle

[Habit7]

Gopeesingh: Take up issue with Equal Opportunity
Story Created: Nov 10, 2011 at 10:59 PM ECT
Story Updated: Nov 10, 2011 at 10:59 PM ECT
Minister of Education Dr Tim Gopeesingh has advised People's National Movement (PNM) MP Patricia McIntosh to take the issue of alleged discrimination by the Maha Sabha at the Tunapuna Hindu Primary School to the Equal Opportunity Commission for a ruling.
He was speaking on Wednesday night in the House of Representatives at Tower D, Waterfront Complex, Port of Spain, in response to a motion on the adjournment brought by PNM MP Patricia McIntosh.
In giving a chronology of the events, Gopeesingh said on June 17, 2011, the principal, Sita Gajadharsingh Nanga, wrote to the Teaching Service Commission (TSC) requesting a transfer, in which she made numerous allegations about the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS) board.
He said the letter was copied to no one at the ministry, except a School Supervisor 3. He said on August 10, 2011, a letter from the secretary general of the Maha Sabha was sent to the TSC, supporting Gajadharsingh Nanga's request for the transfer and making allegations against her. That letter was also not sent to the Ministry of Education. On August 22, a memorandum from the TSC came to the ministry, seeking its comments and recommendations on the issue.
Gopeesingh said on August 30, 2011, the permanent secretary sent a letter to the Commission, indicating the following: The principal had not followed the established procedures in applying for a transfer since the Public Service Commission regulations require such an application to be made through the school board to the permanent secretary; the issues raised by both the principal and the secretary general of the Maha Sabha contained many substantiated allegations; the decision on the transfer remains a matter for the Commission to decide.
Gopeesingh said on September 26, the Director of Personal Administration wrote to the Ministry of Education, requesting that the permanent secretary take steps to ensure that the principal be allowed to carry out her duties at the school. He said a letter was sent to the Maha Sabha on October 14 confirming that unless Gajadharsingh Nanga is transferred or otherwise directed by the TSC, the Maha Sabha board had no authority to debar her from reporting for duty at the school.
Gopeesingh said MTS, on October 20, confirmed the principal would be allowed entry to the school. But on October 24, the same day the principal was debarred from entry to the school, the Maha Sabha advised MTS that it had been relieved of its responsibility at the school. In addition to a report from the School Supervisor 3, the ministry also received a letter from the TSC asking for an investigation. The minister said the permanent secretary appointed a School Supervisor 2 and a School Supervisor 1 to do a probe, and their reports are due today (Friday). He said the Ministry of Education "has behaved in a very responsible manner".
Gopeesingh, however, noted it was the "height of hypocrisy" that the PNM, which for years resisted an Equal Opportunity Commission ("set up as a result of the UNC and the Privy Council"), was asking what the Equal Opportunity Commission would say on this issue.
"You (McIntosh) have a matter that is close to your heart; you should probably send it to the Equal Opportunity Commission for their deliberations on it", he advised.

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Gop ... 65403.html

[silvyrsurfyr]

there is always two sides to the story, and fortunately i also happen to know the other side. if anyone visits the school they would obviously notice that the alegations that the principle was making wasn't true, cause there is indeed a mixture of ethnic groups that attend the school.

And thats the problem SAT has with the Principal, allowing the mixture of ethnic groups to continue.
Similar problem he also had with HCU, too many non-hindus benefitting from a deem Hindu institution.
Sat will be making a statement on the issue today, so we will clearly know where he stands on the matter, like if we don't already know