KAMPALA – Education minister Janet Kataha Museveni has blamed ongoing tuition fees strike at Makerere University on greedy and opportunistic politicians and students.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, October 29, 2019, Ms Museveni lashed out at student leaders whom he said are playing to the gallery for political reasons.
For over a week, business at the country’s oldest public university has been paralysed by the demonstration over the management decision to implement the 15% tuition fees increment policy that was passed by the University Council in 2017.
But the First Lady says that the students’ reaction is unreasonable given that the previous Guild had been consulted over the policy before it was passed.
“Corruption has so much to do with what is happening at our Universities – not just Makerere University but several others,” her statement reads in part.
“First of all, it is important to understand that Makerere University Management took the trouble to ensure that students were fully involved and consulted in the process of establishing an acceptable tuition fee structure for the Institution. How then do students turn around, afterwards, and accuse the University management of imposing “high costs” on the students?”
The minister also expressed surprise as earlier stated by police that non-students were involved in the strike.
‘I have learned with dismay that some of the people involved in this “demonstration” are not students from Makerere University or any other university for that matter. They are people who have made it there way of life to be paid to joint any riot wherever it is happening,” she said.
“Apparently, the political opposition in this country – who are well funded “somehow” by some “unknown sources”– find it useful to pay unemployed young people to riot wherever and whenever they believe they see a viable opportunity.
What is most disheartening is that some of the students at the forefront of these dubious demonstrations at Makerere University are the “privileged ones”. For example, many of these students are sponsored by Government, Master Card Foundation, State House while others are beneficiaries of the Higher Education Students Loan Scheme.”
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See full statement below
Today, I would like to discuss the topic of corruption with you.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines corruption as dishonest or illegal behavior especially of people in authority. This word is used alot these days. It is possible that many people, especially young people, often wonder but never try to understand what corruption really means.
In the last two days or so, we have had some students from Makerere University demonstrating over an increase in tuition fees agreed upon in 2018 which was to start with first-year students of the academic year 2018/2019.
Recently, I got concerned and tried to find out whether there are good and genuine reasons that may have caused this unrest.
First of all, I thought it reasonable to compare Makerere University fees structure with those of other Universities. The University whose fees structure I got readily and quickly was that of Uganda Christian University – Mukono – whose comparison is as follows for a select number of courses (the fees shown are per Semester; not Academic Year):
Undergraduate Course
Bachelor of Social Work and Social Administration
1,110,900.00
Bachelor of Arts/Science in Education
888,720.00
Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery
1,777,440.00
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science
1,666,350.00
Bachelor of Industrial Fine Art and Design
1,110,900.00
1,741,000.00
That aside, however, you may ask, “What has all this to do with corruption?” Corruption has so much to do with what is happening at our Universities – not just Makerere University but several others.
First of all, it is important to understand that Makerere University Management took the trouble to ensure that students were fully involved and consulted in the process of establishing an acceptable tuition fee structure for the Institution, through a series of consultations with the student leadership, and the outcomes were agreed upon by both parties, as well as benchmarking with other similar universities.
How then do students turn around, afterward, and accuse the University management of imposing “high costs” on the students? Surely, the logical and right thing to do would have been to ask for further consultations so as to revisit the issue and find a new way forward.
MTt notwithstanding, I have learned with dismay that some of the people involved in this “demonstration” are not students from Makerere University or any other university for that matter. They are people who have made it there way of life to be paid to joint any riot wherever it is happening.
Apparently, the political opposition in this country – who are well funded “somehow” by some “unknown sources”– find it useful to pay unemployed young people to riot wherever and whenever they believe they see a viable opportunity.
What is most disheartening is that some of the students at the forefront of these dubious demonstrations at Makerere University are the “privileged ones”. For example, many of these students are sponsored by Government, Master Card Foundation, State House while others are beneficiaries of the Higher Education Students Loan Scheme.
One young student lied about his “vulnerable family” to get on the State House Scholarship program only for us to learn later that he has an able-bodied mother with a well-paying Government job! That makes one wonder: What is behind these student demonstrations?
For these vulnerable young people and the adults who pay them it seems as if nothing else matters – not these young people whose minds are distorted early in life; not the fact that the resources used to replace destroyed University property could have solved another problem somewhere; not the consideration that this is very wrong instruction to students of how problems are solved in life without confrontation and destruction of life and property.
Nothing constructive or educational at all is achieved. Instead, the public is misled through there skewed propaganda as to what is really happening.
Unfortunately for those who stir trouble and mislead young minds, there is One who sees what is in people’s hearts and He is the One who is the ultimate Judge; that Judge holds all of us to account; soon or later. We may not see that judgment quickly but in due time it does catch up with each one of us.
Therefore, I address this article to all our young people, but especially to those at Makerere University and other institutions of learning, to advise them to desist from being used by unscrupulous people who do not care about what happens to them now or in the future, and who will abandon them as soon as they have achieved there mischievous purposes.
This than is the corruption we talk about so much without understanding what it is or where it is found. When you hear of corruption, start by examining yourself: Is it possible that you are corrupt too? Are you paying young people to do what is not lawful for them to do?
Are you paying people to go and masquerade as University students demonstrating? Are you paying foreign journalists to come here and tell lies about things they know nothing about, just so you can convince the world that your story is the true one? Are you using the University fees scenario as a façade to cover up something else?
Next time you are tempted to
