A section of Supiri Secondary School leased and built by investors. (-)

The National Ministry of General Education and Central Equatoria government said they are suing the state education minister in court on accusations that he sold a number of public schools to investors.

During an assessment on Friday, National Minister of Education Awut Deng Acuil and Governor Augustino Jadalla, found that Supiri Secondary School is the latest to have been leased to an investment company.

Minister Awut said she has obtained documents showing the sale of several other schools to investors in the capital by the state minister.

“When we came here, it was unfortunate that again Supiri that we knew all these year, has been sold by the Minister of General Education,” Awut told the media.

“The papers of these companies that have been given these lands are with me. I don’t even know why the companies will even accept to destroy the education system in our country.”

Ms. Awut did not identify the state minister by name, but the current minister is Cirisio Zakaria Lado. Eye Radio made several calls to Minister Zakaria to hear his side of the story, but his phone went unanswered.

Minister Awut also accused Mr. Zakaria of turning a number of public schools to private ones by charging students without the state governor’s knowledge, and in violation of the free education policy order by President Kiir.

“There is plenty of land in Central Equatoria that can be given by the government, and I don’t know what has gone wrong with our minister in Central Equatoria for him to sell schools.

“Some of the public schools now, he has turned them to private schools. They dismiss our children after four hours and charge them expensively without the knowledge of the governor.”

She said her institution and the state government are taking the official to court for the alleged malpractices.

“This has been going on, there is a resolution and we are taking the minister of education to court because this has become too much.”

Minister Awut said Supiri is not the only school leased to investors, adding that more than five other schools have been affected in the scheme.

“Here are the documents he has been issuing out, selling school from one school to another school. Juba Commercial is sold, now Supiri is sold, Juba Day is sold, and so is Malakia and Gumbo and every other place.”

“A space for children for education, and education which is the future of this country, has no value from our minister of Central Equatoria. We need to protect it.”

She said the government will demolish every building or fence illegally constructed on school land to reclaim the learning space.

“It is the minister of education that protect public institutions, particularly schools and institutes, but not the minister exercising his powers to sell schools.”

“It is unfortunate and we would implement the resolution as it is. Anybody that has sold school, we will take legal action and we will demolition whatever infrastructure that has been done.”

On his part, Governor Augustino Jadalla warned his cabinet ministers over sales of government land, charging that anyone involved in such practice will face the force of the law.

According to a statement from the governor’s office, the section of land belonging to Supiri Secondary School has been sold to three companies that have started construction of their property.

The head teacher of Supiri reportedly told the senior official that orders for selling the portion of the school land came from the Central Equatoria State Ministry of Education.

“The Ministry of Education doesn’t have the right to make investment within a school (…) we are going to take legal action especially against the person who made orders that this place should be sold off,” Governor Jadalla said, according to a statement from his office.

“This should be a lesson to everybody (…) no ministry should make investment in a government land,” warned the Governor.