ZAGREB, April 11 2018 – The nongovernmental organisation GOOD has described the appointment of former education minister Radovan Fuchs as a special advisor to the prime minister to coordinate the work of the Expert Task Force for the curricular reform as the latest political trade-off between the HDZ and the HNS, accusing Prime Minister Andrej Plenković of appointing his players to slow down the curricular reform.
“Giving up on the appointment of the head of the Expert Task Force… and appointing Radovan Fuchs to coordinate the work of the Expert Task Force is the latest political trade-off between the HDZ and the HNS. On the other hand, PM Plenković has willingly sacrificed Matko Glunčić as he did earlier Pavo Barišić and Dijana Vican in order to seemingly satisfy his coalition partner, however, in reality he has brought in his players who will keep slowing down the curricular reform, that is, what is left of it,” the NGO said in a statement.
It warned that the real indicator of how serious the government was about the education reform were the planned investments in the reform, which, even though ostensibly bigger than in 2017, were actually lower as 75% of the funding for the reform was intended for the purchase of computers. Investing in the computerisation of schools is commendable, but in no way sufficient for the real change Croatian schools need, the NGO said.
It also criticised the HNS and Science and Education Minister Blaženka Divjak for giving up on transparency and depoliticisation of the education reform so as to prevent the appointment of the person who was not to the minister’s liking, and for accepting a compromise to save their own positions.
GOOD recalled that it had previously demanded the resignation of the minister and other relevant officials over the reform, noting that it did not expect professionalism or ethical responsibility from people willing to go back on their own promises and use in political trade-offs the education and future of children and society in general just to save their own positions. “The cost of their trade-offs will not be paid by them but by current and future generations of students,” the NGO said.
