Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has directed the Board and CEO of the Tertiary Scholarship and Loans Board to urgently review the decision to raise the requirements for students academic performance under the National Topper’s Scheme.
Sayed-Khaiyum says the TSLB has made a hasty decision to raise GPA requirements, without government’s approval or consultation and some students found themselves unfairly suspended from the scheme.
He says the TSLB should have consulted government, educational institutions, and students.
Sayed-Khaiyum has thanked the students who raised the issue with him.
He says during the meeting, a number of issues were also raised on the implementation of other TSLB polices.
The Minister for Economy will be holding further discussions with the CEO and the Board of TSLB to review matters such as GPA requirements, the notification process, and probation and suspension protocols to ensure the decisions affecting students are fair.
TSLB has been directed to provide a detailed brief to the Minister for Economy by early next week.
Thank you to the student reps who met with us today to talk through the unfair and unilateral suspension of Topper's students by the TSLB. Govt never approved the arbitrary move to raise GPA requirements nor the resulting suspensions. We are having that decision reviewed ASAP.
— Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum (@FijiAG) January 22, 2021
