Parents of these students, who include over 200 girls, have decided not to send their children to schools in Al-Khadraa village, located 35 km from Omuq, until authorities find a solution to their long-standing problem, according to a report in Al-Madinah Arabic daily.
Sources at the education department in Makkah province said that preparations are under way to open an intermediate school for boys in the village.
The villagers’ decision has resulted in a drop in student numbers at some schools in Al-Khadraa. Abdullah Al-Abdali, director of Asad bin Al-Furat intermediate and secondary school in Al-Khadraa, confirmed that students from Omuq had not attended classes when schools reopened on Saturday.
“The villagers’ decision has affected the school badly. Now, students in our intermediate classes are no more than five. As for secondary classes, there are only about 10 students,” he said.
Speaking to the newspaper, Omuq resident Saleh Al-Majnuni said that their students would continue staying away from schools until authorities take action to open intermediate and secondary schools in their locality.
“It is a hazardous and long journey for children to their school. They have to use long desert roads where accidents happen every now and then,” he said.
“After traveling more than 35 km to and from school, our children reach home so tired and are not in the mood to go to school the next day.” He urged education authorities to take action urgently.
Naif Al-Hadli, another villager, said that there is only one elementary school in Omuq.
“The first batch of students graduated from the school in 2003. After this, these students have had no option other than traveling long distances to continue their education in Al-Khadraa,” he said, adding that the lack of accessible elementary and secondary schools has forced many students to discontinue their education.
Mofleh Al-Otaibi, another citizen, drew attention to the fact that heavy rains and flash floods happen often in the region.
“This puts the students at great risk. Last year alone, two students lost their lives because of bad weather,” he said.
According to Al-Otaibi, the solution for the problem is very simple — open new intermediate and secondary schools in Omuq.
Two other villagers, Saad Al-Otaibi and Doghaileb Al-Majnuni, said an elementary school for girls was opened in the village at the beginning of the current academic year.
However, after two weeks, it was shut down for unknown reasons.
A lack of adequate buildings is the main reason for not opening intermediate and secondary schools, said education sources in Makkah province.
Hamed Al-Silmi, director of education in Makkah province, confirmed that there are no appropriate land or buildings to open new schools in Omuq.
“Most plots do not have original ownership deeds. So it is difficult for us to buy land and build schools. There are also no buildings with required facilities to run schools,” he said.
Muhammad Al-Shamrani, assistant director of education for boys in Makkah province, said that the department has already submitted its proposal to open an intermediate school in Omuq to the Ministry of Education and is waiting for final approval.
