Government Pulls Funding For Islamic School

[icyfroth]

The federal government has pulled all of its funding for Australia’s largest Islamic school, potentially putting the centre’s future in doubt.

The Malek Fahd school in Greenacre, in Sydney’s southwest, was issued with a notice from the Department of Education yesterday detailing a stop to the funding.

Education authorities made the decision to revoke $20 million in Commonwealth funding from April 8, because the money was not being spent on education – a requirement for funding under the Education Act.

The Daily Telegraph has reported the decision to stop the funding comes after several warnings.

http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/02/09/06/01/future-of-australias-largest-islamic-school-in-dou...

No word on what the funding has been spent on.

[Anonymous]

with majority of the funds coming from

the government, they will probably 

close the school.  that's 2000 students

looking for new schools.  

[Anonymous]

The former business manager of embattled Sydney Islamic school Malek Fahd has welcomed a decision to cut federal funding.

The federal government spent $19 million on the school last year but now says it will withdraw funding over concerns about the school's financial management.

Malek Fahd's former business manager Agim Garana says he's not surprised, citing mismanagement under school chairman Hafez Kassem.

"I'm very pleased that the decision has been made, because you don't want a school like this to run the way it has been running," Mr Garana told AAP.

"The money should be going to education. Why isn't that happening?"

Mr Garana said contracts for employment at the school had been awarded in a way that breached proper tender processes.

The school was paying $1.5 million per year in rent to the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils - which Mr Kassem presides over - when the land was worth less than half that, Mr Garana said.

Mr Kassem and AFIC have been contacted for comment.

Mr Garana said he was sacked last October for opposing Mr Kassem and added that the chairman had refused to stand down despite warnings from education authorities.

He called for the board's removal, saying the school wouldn't survive without federal funding.

"Parents are extremely upset," he said.

"It's embarrassing how this man has continued to survive so long."

Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham said the school was put on notice last year for not complying with "fundamental governance, financial and accountability requirements".

"After carefully considering the response to the issues raised in the compliance notice, my department had to make the difficult decision to revoke the funding approval," he said in a statement.

"School governance should be of the highest standard and funding should be exclusively used for the education and welfare of students."

More than 2200 students were enrolled at Malek Fahd in 2014.

The education department has directed concerned parents to contact the school.

Five other schools around the country are under review: the Islamic College of Brisbane, the Islamic College of Melbourne, the Islamic College of South Australia, the Islamic School of Canberra, and Langford Islamic College in WA.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2016/02/09/ex-staffer-slams-islamic-school-management

[lind9650]

Islamic Schools are all good and well, like Catholic or Jewish Shools. but --- how many non muslim Australian or English teachers do they employ? The children have to learn the language, the laws, the history of our country. etc, etc, etc.

Just wondering?

Erica

[icyfroth]

So they were awarding contracts to their mates?

How were they spending the money?

[the_great_she_elephant]

---

@icyfroth wrote:

So they were awarding contracts to their mates?

How were they spending the money?

---

Probably on  the same same kind of things on which most corrupt businessmen spend their illgotten gains - flashy cars, flashier clothes, big houses, expensive holidays. . . .  the list is endless.

[Anonymous]

---

@the_great_she_elephant wrote:

---

@icyfroth wrote:

So they were awarding contracts to their mates?

How were they spending the money?

---

Probably on  the same same kind of things on which most corrupt businessmen spend their illgotten gains - flashy cars, flashier clothes, big houses, expensive holidays. . . .  the list is endless.

---

so no chance for the school 

staying open then? poor kids....

saw an interview with the worried

parents. 100's of teachers jobs on

the line...

at least dept of education is confident

the students will find places in local

schools. maybe its for the best considering

the above 

[johcaschro]

Considering what Islam teaches about gender roles in society, I think it's for the best if the school closes and the pupils attend local secular schools.

Like so many other people who represent themselves as role-model religious institutions, those in charge demonstrably don't act on (and by extension, don't believe in) one single moral lesson which they preach.

There's no good reason (other than an economic, cost-shifting one) why our govt gives any funding at all to religious schools of any denomination. These are private schools, operating on a private business model. They should either be able to make a success of their business or quietly close down and fade away and cease demanding that our tax dollars provide them with a subsidy.

And I also wonder; if the money wasn't spent on the education of the children, what was it spent on?

If it's our money (our taxes) then we have the right to know how and where it was spent.

[chameleon54]

---

@icyfroth wrote:

So they were awarding contracts to their mates?

How were they spending the money?

---

One upside,...... if they all lose their jobs, it sounds like they could have a budding career in politics.....

[lloydslights]

Thoughts about the 150 or so contracted teachers and support  staff who will be without work should the school close?  

The displaced schoolchildren?

Nearby (unresourced) schools which would be needed to "take up the slack"?

To overcome this disgusting situation, I envisage steps similar to a Local Council being taken over by Administrators as the only solution.

DEB