Omar Anderson, Gleaner WriterOLIVIA 'BABSY' Grange, Member of Parliament for Central St. Catherine, on Tuesday called on the Ministry of Health (MoH) to instruct hospitals to stop withholding birth records from the Registrar General's Department (RGD) because of non-payment of fees.
She said this was preventing a number of youngsters in her constituency from ever attending school or seeking further education. Making her contribution to the just-concluded 2005/2006 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives, Ms. Grange asserted that a number of children in her constituency were not in schools because they had no birth certificate.
Grange said that in some cases, even at age 10, some persons had never attended a public school.
"In some instances, after taking the GSAT (Grade Six Achievement Test) examination some two years ago, the children are still at home because they have failed to present a certified copy of their birth certificate to the ministry's regional office to obtain information on the schools they were placed," she said.
COST OF REGISTRATION
Ms. Grange told the House she had more than 23 applications for registration of birth, each costing between $3,300 and $5,500.
"I am therefore recommending that an amnesty be given to children born between January 1990 and June 2001, who should still be in school," she said. She also suggested that arrangements be made through the RGD for late registration cases to be given special treatment.
"My determination is to ensure that as many children in the constituency as possible, facing these challenging circumstances, are assisted to facilitate their attendance in school come the beginning of the next school year in September," Ms. Grange said.
The MP added that the impact of the problem on the children's education, needed special and urgent investigation by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education.
