The Ministry of Education is urging parents whose children are enrolled in public schools to pay a total of $8.25, 25 cents per meal for a total of 33 days, before the start of school year.
According to Haruo, “There’s confusion because parents think that at the beginning of school year, they’re not going to pay for the 25 cents,” Haruo explained. “But it doesn’t work that way. The school year and the year budget are different. Parents still have to pay for the 25 cents per day from August 16 to September 30.”
President Johnson Toribiong earlier proposed to earmark an amount of $200,000 toprovide free meals for public school students, but the House of Delegates (HOD) rejected his proposal.
Haruo said the proposed budget for student meals is $800,000, but the HOD has chopped it down to $600,000.
If the proposed subsidy for lunch will be approved, a total of 3,000 kids will benefit from the free lunch meal.
Haruo added that although the budget still has to pass through the Senate, in case it gets cut down to $600,000, there is a possibility that the parents will need to continue paying for the 25 cents student meals.
“Remember, this is only a budget proposal,” Haruo said. “This could still change.”
