Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU) secretary Joseph Stalin says that 2,367 children have been admitted to popular schools outside the formal system for almost three years.
Citing the 2022 Auditor General’s Annual report, he says that these informal recruitments took place between January 1, 2020 and May 31, 2022.
According to the report, it is said that the number of letters issued by the Secretary of the Ministry of Education for the admission of children outside of the formal system is 3,308. 72% of those letters have been issued based on the requests of officials including Ministers, Members of Parliament, the President’s Secretariat and the Prime Minister’s Office, says the Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers Association.
The C.T.U secretary disclosed that last year 41 letters were issued to Visakha College, 48 letters to Ananda College and 38 letters to Nalanda College, Colombo for the 5th year scholarship classes.
33 letters have been issued to Sirimavo Bandaranaike Girls’ College, Colombo. 31 letters to Kurunegala Maliadeva Boys College; 48 to Kurunegala Maliadeva Girls College and 29 to Kandy Dharmaraja College. It is also stated that 30 letters have been issued to Kandy Mahamaya Girls College, 15 letters to Kandy Kingswood College and 31 letters to Kandy High Girls College. Grade 5 scholarship recipients are severely affected by these activities.