Still no heating in Struga schools, students warn of class boycott

Five days after the start of the heating season, primary and secondary schools in Struga still have no heating. Students are attending classes in cold rooms, while low temperatures in the morning and evening are making the situation worse. The reason is a delay in the supply of fuel oil and firewood.

“There is no heating and it is very cold. We all want to leave as soon as possible because we cannot stay here. Today they shortened our classes by five minutes, that was all,” said a student at “Niko Nestor” High School. Asked how long they had been facing this problem, he replied: “A week or two—we are freezing. There is no heating at all.”

A student at “Ibrahim Temo” High School said the situation in the classroom was also difficult. “There is no heating, there is nothing, and it is very cold. In the morning it may have worked for only 10 minutes or so, but even that does not work,” he said.

Another student at the same school said temperatures could rise somewhat only after the sun came out. “At the moment, the situation is bad because we cannot sit in the classroom during the first morning classes. Later, when the sun comes out, the classroom may warm up a little, but now it is very cold. We raised our concern with the principal and were told that there would be an improvement starting next week,” he stressed.

The students are warning that they will boycott classes if the problem is not resolved. Meanwhile, some students at “Niko Nestor” also left school early today.

“The class schedule has not been shortened. The heating problem has prompted reactions from both students and teachers. We submitted the request to the principal, but we have still not received a response,” said a student at “Ibrahim Temo” High School. Asked what they would do if no solution was found, he replied: “We may boycott classes.”

In Dërasllajcë, parents have decided not to send their children to school in order to protect their health. The Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) described the situation not as an oversight, but as a complete failure of local governance and the school principals. The Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) also criticized the municipality’s poor management.

“The fact that the public procurement procedure for supplying fuel oil to primary schools began on September 28 shows that the Municipality of Struga and its leaders have neither a plan nor a vision for addressing the problems and challenges faced by the municipality’s citizens and institutions,” said Faton Pollozhani, a DUI councillor.

The Education Sector announced that, following the completion of the tender procedure, the distribution of fuel oil and firewood to primary schools is under way, thanks to the Municipality of Struga’s basic budget. For secondary schools, meanwhile, the tendering procedure is continuing and is being conducted by the educational institutions themselves. According to the sector, greater support from the Ministry of Education, and consequently from the Government, is expected in the coming period./Alsat/