The Chronicle
By Midlands Correspondent
22 July 2012
HUNDREDS of pupils enrolled in private colleges in Gweru are stranded after the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture cracked down on unregistered colleges, ordering them to close.
At least 10 colleges that have been illegally operating in Gweru have been closed following the crackdown, which started about three weeks ago.
Midlands provincial education director Mrs Agnes Gudo said the crackdown on unregistered colleges was an ongoing process, adding that some officials running these colleges had since appeared in court.
A survey conducted by Chronicle last week revealed that hundreds of pupils have been left stranded following the development.
Some pupils who have been attending such colleges as Golf Academy, New Era and A Plus could be seen milling around their respective premises.
“We have been reporting for school for this past week here without attending lessons. We have heard through rumours that our college was ordered to close by the ministry but there has not been any official communication from the college officials as to what is going on,†said one pupil doing O-Level at New Era College.
The pupils, some of whom are preparing to sit for Ordinary and Advanced Level public examinations later this year, said the development had greatly affected their preparations.
“This has greatly affected our preparations for our public exams. We are not even aware what these officials will do for us because it is unfair given that we have been paying monthly fees for these lessons,†said another A-Level pupil with New EraCollege.
Pupils at Pinnacle College, which has been using the now defunct Mkoba TM Supermarket premises, said management had organised transport to ferry them to Gweru city where they said they had also established another makeshift college in the CBD.
“The management has been hiring kombis to take us to the city from Mkoba. We are using some makeshift premises in the central business district but it seems it’s only a cat and mouse game because the premises are not conducive for proper learning,†said one pupil.
Meanwhile, registered private colleges have hailed the operation by the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, Sen David Coltart, saying unregistered colleges were pushing them out of business.
In an interview, secretary of the recently launched Gweru Registered Colleges Association, Mr Philip Baulet said unregistered private colleges were charging as little as $10 per pupil as enrolment and school fees per month.
“What these unregistered colleges are doing is unprofessional because they do not pay anything to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority and no formal registration procedures were done. What they have been doing was that they have been charging only $10 per child per month thereby pushing properly registered colleges out of business. Owing to this they were now enrolling hundreds of pupils who would be exposed to various diseases as they would be made to share one toilet despite their large numbers,†he said.
Mr Baulet said registered private colleges were charging between $35 and $40 per month.
Mrs Gudo said the move to close unregistered colleges was meant to protect parents from profiteering businesspeople.
She said the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture regulations also provide that people wishing to run private colleges should register with the ministry.
“According to the Education Act as amended in 2006, any person who wishes to establish, operate or maintain an independent college should make a written application to the Secretary for Education, Sport, Arts and Culture for the registration of such a college. There has, however, been concern with unregistered colleges that were sprouting all over Gweru with the management out to fleece parents by charging unapproved fees,†she said.
Mrs Gudo said the ministry had closed a number of unregistered colleges which were operating in Gweru.
“Some individuals who have been running these unregistered colleges have since appeared in court,†she said.