The "Contractors’ Movement" expressed surprise at Education Minister Abbas Halabi's disregard for the seriousness of the issues facing public education and the external and internal plans aimed at eradicating it.
They questioned: "How can you endure for over two months while your students are in the streets, at risk of delinquency and crime, with the solution in your hands represented by the disbursement of incentives this week at the beginning of the academic year?"
The "Contractors’ Movement" also urged the Education Minister to "not waste time and avoid the finger-pointing game, as the responsibility for Lebanon's students is greater and more honorable than this condition." They further called on him, "If he cannot provide incentives, to permanently close the schools and high schools, rather than allowing the striking principals to collect strikes. He should order the immediate transfer of all public school students to private schools, along with a payment of $50 for each public student to assist them with their transportation to school during these challenging circumstances. It is unacceptable to impose obligations on our students and children that they have no relation to, and their only fault is that they trusted institutions they considered protected by the state and ministry, only to find out that the Ministry of Education is a negligent body that has left its students in the streets for over three months without solving their issue, taking initiative, or even having the courage to make the right decision out of fear of the ruling parties and a group that has openly declared itself against public schools and the education of poor children."
