What did Quang Tri province leaders say about the mass poisoning of students?

Parents' confidence is shaken

The case of more than 40 students of Kim Thuy Primary Boarding School, Kim Ngan Commune ( Quang Tri ) being hospitalized after breakfast at school, along with the fact that parents did not send 75 students to class, has attracted special public attention. After many meetings, the leaders of Quang Tri province spoke up, requesting a decisive solution to regain the trust of parents and students.

Mr. Hoang Nam chaired the regular September meeting of the People's Committee of Quang Tri province.

As Tien Phong newspaper reported, on the morning of September 26, dozens of students of Kim Thuy Primary Boarding School showed symptoms of nausea and stomachache and had to be hospitalized for emergency treatment.

The clip recorded a scene in the school's medical room with the presence of the Board of Directors, including a person believed to be Ms. Do Thi Hong Hue, Vice Principal in charge of boarding, instructing medical staff not to let students go to the hospital without the opinion of the leaders, making parents even more upset.

Immediately after that, 75 boarding students were given leave by their parents. Many parents said they no longer had confidence in the quality of meals and the safety of their children at school, especially when the person in charge of boarding had let such a serious incident happen.

Under pressure from parents, Kim Ngan commune decided to temporarily suspend Ms. Do Thi Hong Hue from work pending the conclusion of the case by the authorities. As soon as Ms. Hue was suspended from work, 75 parents simultaneously took their children to school to continue their studies.

Ms. Le Thi Huong, Director of the Department of Education and Training of Quang Tri province, said: Parents have requested to change the food supplier, replace the catering staff and suspend Ms. Do Thi Hong Hue. If after 15 days of suspension, Ms. Hue returns to school, parents will continue to let their children stay home.

Ms. Diep Thi Minh Quyet spoke at the meeting.

Meanwhile, the Quang Tri Province Health Department also considered the Kim Ngan incident a major warning. Ms. Diep Thi Minh Quyet, Director of the Health Department, said that she will coordinate with the Education Department to simultaneously inspect school kitchens, especially those where there are public complaints.

We must ensure that the school meals are truly safe and of good quality. This is the basic factor for parents to feel secure.
Director of Quang Tri Department of Health Diep Thi Minh Quyet

Provincial viewpoint: Commune must take the lead in resolving the issue.

Speaking at the regular meeting of the Provincial People's Committee in September, Mr. Hoang Nam, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee, emphasized: Kim Thuy Primary Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities is currently under the People's Committee of Kim Ngan Commune.

According to the hierarchy, the school's staff and personnel are under the management authority of the commune. Therefore, any incident, especially one related to the responsibility of the staff, must be resolved by the People's Committee of the commune.

Mr. Hoang Nam said that the incident is under the jurisdiction of Kim Ngan commune.

“Regarding food safety issues and especially the recent incident in Kim Ngan commune, the commune People's Committee must be the unit in charge of handling it. This is a clearly decentralized responsibility. However, that does not mean the commune has to fumble around on its own. Provincial functional units, especially the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Training, must actively support in terms of expertise and legal procedures, so that the commune has a basis for transparent and timely handling,” said Mr. Nam.

According to Mr. Hoang Nam, it is extremely necessary to clearly define the roles and authority of each level of government. If the commune does not handle the matter and pushes it to higher levels, it will prolong the matter and destabilize the teaching and learning situation in the locality.

The Standing Vice Chairman of the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee also requested specialized departments to urgently coordinate, test, and make an official conclusion on the cause of the poisoning and specific responsibilities. On that basis, the Kim Ngan Commune People's Committee must make a decision to decisively handle the individuals and groups involved.

“Provincial agencies need to have professional affirmations and clear legal conclusions. On that basis, the commune will have a basis for making decisions, ensuring transparency and convincing parents. The ultimate goal is for students to return to school soon, and for parents to feel secure in sending their children,” Mr. Nam emphasized.

Mr. Hoang Nam said: The incident is a valuable “lesson” for the entire education system of Quang Tri province. We cannot wait for an incident to happen and then deal with it, but we need to build a mechanism to prevent it and regularly monitor collective kitchens.

Director of the Department of Education and Training of Quang Tri province had a dialogue with parents of students after the mass poisoning incident.

The final settlement of the incident is not only an immediate responsibility to Kim Ngan’s parents and students, but also a measure for the entire education and health management system of Quang Tri province. “We will not let a similar incident happen again in any other school in the area,” Mr. Hoang Nam affirmed.