–Education Ministry says

The following is the full text of a statement from the Ministry of Education:
“THE Ministry of Education’s Unit of Allied Arts notes the article published in the Stabroek News on March 27, 2024, “Rights commission awaiting info on exclusion of children from Mash contests” and wishes to bring clarity to the matter.

“So far, no request for information has been received from the Rights of the Child Commission. It is important to emphasise that the Unit of Allied Arts welcomes any requests from statutory bodies such as the Rights of the Child Commission.

“However, we were unaware of any investigation into this matter until it was brought to our attention through a news article titled: “Rights commission awaiting info on exclusion of children from Mash contests” published by Stabroek News. While we take note of this article, it is surprising that such a publication was made without any formal requests being directed to the Unit of Allied Arts, either by the ROC or the Stabroek News.

“On Friday last, an unidentified person who refused to provide any form of identification visited the Unit of Allied Arts’ office located in the Queen’s College Compound. At the time, all senior officers were in the field on official duties and as such, he was provided with a telephone number for the office to make contact later. To date, no contact has been made with the unit, nor has any official request been made for information regarding the Children’s Mashramani Calypso Competition.

“It should be noted that the rules which govern the Children’s Mashramani Calypso Competition have been in place for more than 30 years.

“We remain committed to transparency and cooperation with all relevant authorities and look forward to any formal communication from the Rights of the Child Commission regarding this matter.”