By Mike Rwothomio
A section of Parents and teachers in greater Nebbi are not reading on the same page, following the August 3, 2024 Speech by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni asserting that education at government -aided primary schools must be free of charge.
The president alluded to his previous warnings against charging pupils in government-aided schools.
Museveni whilst speaking during a thanksgiving ceremony for the state minister of Minerals Phiona Nyamutoro at Nebbi SS playground in Nebbi Municipality, faulted school administrators for imposing exorbitant fees on learners in Government-aided schools, which is against the National Resistance Movement ideology of free education for all.
” The NRM Since 1997, wanted you to do free education in the government schools, but some people have not yet got this message and are still charging our people in schools, that is where the problem is, the NRM line is that in government schools, there should be no paying charges” He noted
He also said the free education system over the years has not been fully Implemented ” because people are not convinced”
Many education experts in Uganda argue that the government has failed to address wide gaps created by PTAs and School administrators thus exacerbating unnecessary additional fees.
Museveni urged Ugandans to task their leaders to demand why School Authorities are imposing exorbitant fees on learners.
” Task your leaders to ask why there are charges in schools, go to your LCIII, councilors, ask them why there are charges in schools” He said.
Hundreds who gathered to listen to the president repeatedly growled over the President’s free education speech, saying in chorus that ” the free education policy is just on paper”.
There seems to be direct impact of the president’s speech. Apparently, many School administrators who spoke to this Publication under condition of anonymity said they are facing challenges as many parents are intentionally failing to make necessary payments.
One of the Head teachers of a government-aided school in Paidha Town Council, Zombo District said ” the president speech of free education has made many parents to become big headed, a parent openly told me last week that we are demanding for money from them unlawfully, attributing what the president said”
Another school head teacher in one of the schools in Nebbi Municipality said ” many parents are failing to comply saying the president advised that education is free of charge, what do we do in situation like this yet we need those fees to sort out a lot of things in school”
” They are giving us little UPE grants and they expect us not to charge the parents? The money the government gives is not enough; I’m telling you there can’t be enough money from the government to run these government schools” Another teacher recounted saying there can never be free education given the current situation in the education sector.
Uganda has 12,33 government-aided primary schools that annually receive a capitation grant as part of the government commitment of aiding learner’s education.
One of the LCIII chairpersons in Nebbi District Said ” You imagine President telling our people not to pay school fees yet Kampala schools are more expensive than ours inciting parents against head teachers so greater Nebbi let’s open our eyes ”
The Government of Uganda introduced free Universal Primary Education in 1997, as an option to people who can’t afford the exorbitant fees and charges in private schools.
Apparently, the government is also planning to make UPE compulsory and parents will be subjected to punishment upon failing to send their children to school if the policy goes as planned.
Parents react.
Keuber Peter, a parent from Nebbi Municipality after the president’s speech told this Publication that ” we are so happy that the president has listened to our plights, some of the schools have become a money making venture for the administrators”
” I used to ask myself whether we are fully paying fees or not because these school leaders are increasing payment on us per term, thank God the president has intervened ” Sharon Awekunimungu, a parent from Paidha Town Council said.
With the mushrooming best performing private schools in even rural areas, Public Primary Schools under Universal Primary Education are facing stiff competition, with many parents preferring to send their children to private schools.
Government-aided primary schools especially in rural areas grapples with immense challenge of ailing infrastructure, sky-high staffing gap amongst others and it’s against that backdrop that many school administrators impose additional charges on parents to partly adress some of the challenges. This is because government funds is insufficient to keep the schools afloat.
