![MCAST Principal Removed From Position By Education Ministry](https://maltadaily.mt/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/mcastfb.jpg)
The Ministry of Education has relieved Joachim James Calleja of his duties as principal at MCAST, responding to ongoing industrial action and tensions within the institution.
Sources close to MCAST revealed to MaltaToday that the ministry notified the college’s board of this decision and plans to initiate a public search for a successor.
MCAST has been embroiled in a labor dispute with the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT), resulting in over a month of industrial action that has disrupted exams and strained relations between faculty and students.
The tipping point appears to have been MCAST’s controversial authorization of police patrols with student search powers on its campuses, a move criticized publicly by Education Minister Clifton Grima as unnecessary.
Sources indicate that the government’s move aims to alleviate the tense atmosphere at MCAST, described as stifling by stakeholders. By replacing Calleja, who took office in 2018, including prior roles at Cedefop and as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Employment, the government hopes to inject new energy and resolve into the college.
More on this as story progresses.
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