Agur says he agreed to leave to restore peace at vocational school

Hendrik Agur, the departing head of the Ida-Viru Vocational Education Centre, said he agreed with the Education Ministry to leave his post to restore a calm working environment. He made the comments on the ERR programme Ringvaade.

Agur said he was leaving formally at his own request, but described the decision as a reasonable agreement rather than a straightforward personal choice. He said the ministry, which runs the school, faced an excessive administrative burden responding to genuine, false and AI-generated complaints. He also cited people in the community who had initiated complaints and encouraged students to collect signatures.

Agur said a car compensation issue was one factor in the situation. He is under investigation over more than 4,000 euros in compensation for journeys he did not make. He called the matter regrettable and said he had repaid the money.

He said the payments reflected a longstanding practice of treating car compensation as part of an employee’s pay, which he continued without seeking clarification. Agur acknowledged that he had sensed the arrangement was not quite right and said the violation was real.

Asked whether his departure was linked to the introduction of Estonian-language education at the centre, which operates in Narva, Sillamäe and Kohtla-Järve, Agur gave a broader response. He said respect for the Estonian language was important and argued that a mentality of using the country’s services and benefits without wanting to respect its language was widespread.