The scope of the political and territorial debate over the decisions to merge and close a number of official educational institutions has expanded to include the Baabda district. Member of the “Strong Lebanon” bloc, MP Cesar Abi Khalil, directed sharp criticism at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, demanding that the decision to close Hadath Public High School be reconsidered.
In his post on the “X” platform, Abi Khalil considered that the decision to close the secondary school falls within “a campaign targeting public schools in the Mount Lebanon Governorate,” in line with what he described as the reasons for keeping them; Most notably, the school building is owned by the municipality of Baabda and does not incur any rental burdens, in addition to covering its operating expenses entirely from student registration fees.
The representative pointed out that the numbers of students in Al-Hadath High School match their rates in other institutions, distinguishing itself by being the only high school in the Baabda district that provides afternoon education, which allows students who work in the morning the possibility of continuing their educational attainment. He also warned that the proposed alternative, which is Kfarshima High School, is relatively far from the students and lacks the required capacity to accommodate them. Abi Khalil concluded by placing this file in the custody of the ministry, the government, and the forces supporting these trends.
This position comes in the context of a broad debate witnessing local objections to the criteria for reorganizing the network of public schools and secondary schools in Mount Lebanon, especially with regard to merging Al-Hadath High School and transferring its students to Kfarshima. On the other hand, the Ministry of Education confirms that these steps aim to rationalize spending and improve the management of the public education network without necessarily meaning the final closure of institutions.
The debate coincides with the freezing of a similar decision to merge the “Al-Akhtal Al-Saghir Official” Secondary School in Bouchrieh with the Girls’ Secondary School in Jdeidet El-Matn, following efforts conducted by Representative Ibrahim Kanaan with the Presidency of the Republic and the Ministry of Education, awaiting the outcome of following up on the fate of the secondary school.
