In this case, the problem is not only the large amount of money, but also the organization, revenue and expenditure, and the legal role of the lobbying entity.
This is no longer a matter of goodwill or financial transparency, but a matter of law compliance.
According to information reflected, right from the beginning of the school year, the Management Board of Nguyen Van Cu Elementary School (Gia Lai) developed a plan to mobilize funds for roofing and cleaning with a total estimate of 624 million VND for 52 classes, equivalent to 12 million VND/class.
Although BDDPH affirms that all revenues and expenditures are transparent and not for personal gain, this way of lobbying has revealed many signs of inconsistency with current regulations.
Circular No. 16/2018/TT-BGDDT of the Ministry of Education and Training clearly stipulates funding for educational institutions, ensuring absolute voluntariness, and not creating any form of coercion or pressure on parents.
These are fundamental principles, aimed at preventing the situation of "distorted socialization", turning voluntariness into disguised obligations.
In this case, although BDDPH does not call the amount of money "compulsory", the development of a plan with a level of 12 million VND/class is a regulation on the level of contributed money on each parent. Thus, voluntary nature is no longer there.
The occurrence of overcharging at Nguyen Van Cu Elementary School is not the first case, but many schools have violated it.
Many BDDPH believe that mobilizing money to equip more facilities and better conditions for students to study is necessary and a good thing.
However, even if the purpose of use is good, it is still essentially money contributed by parents, not a socialized source in the true sense.
If every school lets BDDPH set requirements to equip the school and then force parents to pay money, it will only be chaos.
Another point to note is that BDDPH is a bridge between schools and parents, participating in supervision and reflecting opinions, not a competent entity standing up to organize financial mobilization, building a revenue and expenditure plan of hundreds of millions of VND for investment items and maintenance of facilities.
Therefore, when the operation of BDDPH exceeds the scope of function, even with good purposes, it is still an act beyond authority.
Funding for education can be done, but it must be in accordance with the law. Education needs the companionship of society, but even more needs transparency, standards and respect for the law.
