Resistance in some quarters to new Swakop school head

THE board and some parents of the Hermann Gmeiner Secondary School at Swakopmund do not want Tony Britz as their new headmaster.

About 20 disgruntled parents held a brief protest yesterday morning, before the start of the second school term. The small crowd of parents marched from the school premises in Tamariskia to the Erongo Regional Education Office, where a letter demanding the removal of Britz was handed to the Regional Director of Education, John Awases.The letter appealed to the Education Ministry to reconsider Britz’s appointment and rather appoint the school board’s candidate of choice – Werner Wahl of Rundu Secondary School.The protesters claimed the appointment was made without consulting the board.”We do not need a person who has to be given a chance to learn now; we need a person who is already experienced,” said Tipsy Maendo, Chairman of the school board.A larger demonstration, which could involve children, would be staged if the Ministry did not meet the board’s demand, Maendo said.Awases received the letter and said the Ministry would look into the matter, but also said that a meeting with the board and the parents would be held to explain the reasons for Britz’s appointment.Meanwhile, Britz told The Namibian yesterday that the demonstration did not faze him and that he appreciates the trust the Ministry has in him to run the school.Britz has 25 years’ experience in education and was most recently a department head at the Atlantic Junior Secondary School.”I reported for duty today, and was introduced to the staff and the children.I have a responsibility, and I will grab the bull by its horns,” he said.Britz is the first principal to be appointed at Hermann Gmeiner since the former principal retired in 2005.In the meantime, the school has been run by acting principal Selma Neshila.The school, which used toform part of the SOS Children’s Villages and was named after the patron of the international welfare organisation, was handed over to Government three months ago.Hermann Gmeiner was one of the few technical schools in Namibia and boasts millions of dollars worth of infrastructure and technical equipment.The equipment will be removed in due course, as it will no longer be a technical school.The small crowd of parents marched from the school premises in Tamariskia to the Erongo Regional Education Office, where a letter demanding the removal of Britz was handed to the Regional Director of Education, John Awases.The letter appealed to the Education Ministry to reconsider Britz’s appointment and rather appoint the school board’s candidate of choice – Werner Wahl of Rundu Secondary School.The protesters claimed the appointment was made without consulting the board.”We do not need a person who has to be given a chance to learn now; we need a person who is already experienced,” said Tipsy Maendo, Chairman of the school board.A larger demonstration, which could involve children, would be staged if the Ministry did not meet the board’s demand, Maendo said.Awases received the letter and said the Ministry would look into the matter, but also said that a meeting with the board and the parents would be held to explain the reasons for Britz’s appointment.Meanwhile, Britz told The Namibian yesterday that the demonstration did not faze him and that he appreciates the trust the Ministry has in him to run the school.Britz has 25 years’ experience in education and was most recently a department head at the Atlantic Junior Secondary School.”I reported for duty today, and was introduced to the staff and the children.I have a responsibility, and I will grab the bull by its horns,” he said.Britz is the first principal to be appointed at Hermann Gmeiner since the former principal retired in 2005.In the meantime, the school has been run by acting principal Selma Neshila.The school, which used toform part of the SOS Children’s Villages and was named after the patron of the international welfare organisation, was handed over to Government three months ago.Hermann Gmeiner was one of the few technical schools in Namibia and boasts millions of dollars worth of infrastructure and technical equipment.The equipment will be removed in due course, as it will no longer be a technical school.