Dominican students who have been receiving scholarships from the Government of Dominica to study abroad will all be bonded with immediate effect.
This is according to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit who was addressing the swearing-in ceremony for the Ministers of Cabinet held at the Windsor Park Sports Stadium on Tuesday.
“I want to say to those of you who have been receiving scholarships to study overseas with immediate effect you will all be bonded,” he said. “Everybody will be bonded.”
He continued, “If you get, you must give back and we shall focus on our national priorities.”
The Prime Minister added, “If you want to study, you study what the country says it needs. If you have your money, you study what you want. It’s a free country.”
He went on to inform the audience that his new government plans to shift a lot of resources to technical vocational education, reiterating that if a student receives money from the treasury of Dominica to study abroad, the assistance will be to facilitate study in areas where there is a deficiency.
“We are going to shift a lot of resources to technical vocational education,” he said. “We need skills in Dominica.”
According to the Prime Minister, “Too many of us are waiting for an electrician to do basic wiring for us; too many of us cannot find a decent plumber.”
He stressed that one cannot build a country if that country doesn’t have a skillset.
“We need trained and experienced tile men and women,” Skerrit pointed out.
He went on to state that attention will also be placed on curriculum reform.
“We have moved the school system to focusing exclusively on preparation for CXC Exams,” he said. “But CXC is not building a holistic child.”
The Prime Minister indicated that there are people who were born with certain skills but the current system is not encouraging that talent to come forth, “and so, we need to ensure that we give students the opportunity.”
Fools believe everybody who work in the NEP stay in the NEP.Smart people know, people have moved from the NEP to higher heights and high paying jobs.Fools believe NEP is only road beautification,smart people know better.
I agree with Skerrit,too many times government give scholarships to people to study.After graduation they don’t come back.In the 70’s there was a section of DGS called the technical wing,where students learn mechanic,carpentry,electricals and more.I believe there was the vocational wing at the St,Martin School.Both schools are now full secondary schools minus the technical and vocational sections.Skerrit should have thought of that years ago.Better late than never.There is a master machinist,a product of the technical wing of the DGS, Kester Davis.
And he can’t even pay or taking forever to pay for their pending tuition. Having students and parents walking back and forth to verify payments or approvals which is highly stressful for students. And you want to bond them after that hahaha. Get serious
He is talking a lot right now. Trying to justify his existence after the sham election didn’t go to plan. I’m absolutely certain that Mister is on borrowed time.
What’s the point of bonding people and can’t give them jobs or pay them 1200
So what’s the point in sending them to study? It is a 2 way street man. Let’s find solutions.
One Love Dominicans #OLD
I must confess that there is definitely a need for more emphasis to be placed on vocational education. Skilled workers are in urgent and great demand.
About bonding the students who are already overseas studying and the government carrying the economic cost for them. The question is this, is it legal for the government to bond these students retroactively? This should be challenged.
The students should have known before the commitments and conditions under which they will obtain government scholarships before making that life-changing decision. It’s only fair.
Roosevelt has no foresight. Everything he does is impulsive, arbitrary and perfunctory. We need to replace him with a leader who is naturally blessed with discernment, acuity and foresightedness.
Ok. We do not just need more employees, but employees in certain fields, where they will work for less, as they will be employed.
*To employ = To use. Employee = the used one or in layman’s terms, slave.
Them being the Employer (the User/ slave master).
Go get your training in these fields, and come back to what? NEP? That little excretion you call a wage or salary? The amount of money that just keeps you alive and nothing more, so we come for handouts anyways?
Poverty Manager (PM)
All men are liars, God alone will tell you the truth.
Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit but this was what you met in place when you took office twenty years ago and you removed it! All you have done is taken Dominica backwards and now in your desperation as you come to the end of your useful life you are desperate to reset! Reset what? Reset what you offset and upset over the past twenty years? Go on, show us your best foot, show Dominicans some goodness and stop your wickedness to the nation!
There we go. He is the one in charge. Hollow promises before elections and afterwards he shows you who runs things. All you have been fooled again.
About time too. A very good initiative.
Remember, learning aTrade and developing one’s skills-set are two different entities. Reminds me of home economics and woodwork back in the day.
Bonded? No problem at all Mr. PM, so long as their employment is guaranteed upon return…afterall this is the whole essence of bonding students, right? But don’t speak of bonding and you have no jobs to give them upon return, eh.
And I have said it before and will say it again. Some of us DO WANT TO COME BACK, but to what really? The political, social and economic climate in Dominica is certainly not encouraging. When you apply for a job you don’t even get a response. So don’t stand behind the podium and speak as though some of us have no allegiance to our country and we don’t want to give back; we do, but we are not given the opportunity and even worst, there is no opportunity. And yes I know that creating our own employment is an option but it is not as soon as you finish university you just get a “boolo largent” and can just start a business. Sometimes, it takes time, especially for those of us that not “well off” so give us a bloody break if we stay overseas and try to…
It’s a bit late to try stopping the fifteen-plus years of hemorrhage but as they say better late than never. The policy of having a graduate in every household was a noble one as we all agree that it is one of the first steps in stamping out poverty, however, it was improperly implemented. I may not have accurate statistics based on the number of students I know who came up here, to the US on government scholarships and who remain here I can safely say over 75% of those students do not return home. These are people we have trained to stay and build the United with their acquired skills and competencies. This is an investment on which will may never reap returns.
I endeavor to hold you and your government’s feet to the fire. Year after year, election after election we hear all this fancy talk, and no actions follow. We as Dominicans whether we live in Dominica or abroad deserve much more respect. PM do what you said you will do.
We have the skilled labour force yet you Skerrit insist on contracting out our jobs and projects to Chinese, French and St Lucians.. your day will come and alas will be the cry… too Little too late
You’re the same P Em that said to the students ” if you get work out there stay and work..” wow!! Just wow…planet 🌏 Dominica
You don’t say! That’s what these bipolar politicians do, change their tongues and change on you…
I don’t see what is wrong in trying to make it overseas, if you can’t make it at home…does he not speak about how remittances help the country also. Alright then, so let us stay, even for awhile, and “make ourselves” and in future when we don’t have to wait on you to give us a house or handouts we can come back, how about that PM?
Does anyone have reason to put confidence in this LIAR’s promises and pronouncements? For twenty years he has continuously and religiously lied to you. You have to be a profound idiot to believe any word that escapes from his lips.
He has promised to reveal the whereabouts of the CBI US $2.4, electoral reforms, official titles to the occupants for the gov’t owned apartments, exiting the multi-million dollar palatial mansion paid for by impoverished tax payers. I could continue ad nauseam.
My final comment is simply this: When a most notorious LIAR with very low mental acuity leads a country there can be no good outcomes.
“According to the Prime Minister, “Too many of us are waiting for an electrician to do basic wiring for us”
I would hope that we all wait for an electrician. Electrical wiring is a specialized skill and electricity is dangerous. It is actually irresponsible for the Prime Minister to make that statement. Leave electricity for the electricians.
Another observation: Is the Prime Minister sounding like a scold these days? Seems like I’m hearing a lot of nag nag nag from him recently.
These ideas have been taken directly from the Coalition of Independent Candidates Manifesto section on Human Resource Development 2050.
The Independent Candidates need to own their Manifesto ideas and engage the Dominican public. The two successful candidates should appoint Senators from those who stood for election so that they form a proper opposition and not focus solely on local issues.
Move quickly
You say that to say what? Are you for development in Dominica? I see no problem in taking a good idea and implementing it for the good of the country and its residents.
No surprise here, just confirmation that the CM has no vision for the country. He is utterly incompetent in state affairs and the little energy that’s left is used to exercise his private wealth management and securing of his power base for years to come.
In the last 15 years the government scholarship scheme was used to help him to get votes. Everything one hopes to get from government is somewhat attached to conditions made by the CM. Most of them are designed to keep him in power one way or another.
“I want to say to those of you who have been receiving scholarships to study overseas with immediate effect you will all be bonded,” he said. “Everybody will be bonded.”
Now, listening to the man, one would think that he just had this beautiful lightbulb idea that signifies a brand new policy towards scholarship recipients to get them to return to serve in Dominica upon completion of their studies. In effect, this is merely a repackaged idea of yesteryear. Bonding was always a condition under past administrations. The relaxation of the bonding rules occurred under his watch for the benefit of the cronies and their children but the old adage, “there is no use closing the stable doors after the horse has escaped”, rings true. Good luck in getting some current overseas scholarship holders in their final years to sign a retroactive bond!
Maybe the Prime Minister is finally taking heed of the scores of DNO Commentaries that I have wrote over the years on the subject of skills and creativity.
Eighteen years ago, when I offered to assist the government in setting apprenticeships for training the skilled mechanical engineers that the country desperately needs, the leading question was: how long will it take.
When I answered that my indentured apprenticeship was for six years and that I was then expected to work as a “journey man” to gain extra experience before being considered as fully qualified, the response was: can’t you train them in six weeks!
Incidentally, the six years of my apprenticeship included three nights a week at night school. To get to work I had to leave home at six in the morning and after night school I didn’t get back home again until ten at night. For the first two years, what I earned didn’t cover the bus fare.
This is not about you, Roger. It’s about satisfying a need of the country. (Just joking)
You have been an unwavering advocate for craftsmen, artisans, the skills. I have that same passion.