KAMPALA – Speaker Rebecca Kadaga, has tasked the Ministry of Education to explain why schools are barring students with fees arrears from sitting for their Uganda Advanced Certificate Examinations (UACE) yet there was a directive to Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB) to have all students sit for their exams pending clearance of their fees upon release of their results.
Kadaga’s directive followed a matter raised by Lyandro Komakech (Gulu Municipality) who described the move by school administration barring students from sitting for exams as a violation of their rights to attain education and called on the Ministry of Education to explain the fiasco.
He said, “Many schools have been barring students who haven’t completed fees from sitting their exams. This is a serious matter, it goes beyond issues of administration but it is a violation of rights of these students to obtain education and the Ministry of Education to explain why schools are stopping pupils to pursue their education.”
Charles Bakabulindi, State Minister for Sports replied saying, “The Ministry has taken a position, it is a culture that we have to pay fees.”
However, Bakabulindi’s response was rejected by a number of MPs like Solomon Silwany (Bukooli Central) who said that the students from Top Care School in Iganga whose plight was carried in media had students with fees balance as low as Shs50,000 refused to sit and yet they were coming to pay when sitting for results, “I think there is a very big problem all over the country where schools were refusing students to sit for exams. The minister should give parliament an answer that is appropriate.”
Bakabulindi instead defended his response asking for more time to consult with the Uganda National Examination Board so as to give Parliament an appropriate response.
He said, “It isn’t a matter of giving an answer but true facts, will sit with UNEB and give a clear answer. I am going to call UNEB and see why they aren’t implementing what was passed by the Government.”
