Arson is criminal

Nov 10, 2004

Recently, Nabumali High School joined the long list of schools whose buildings have been going up in flames. The fury with which Nabumali went up in smoke, however, was more deadly than any other school arson before it.

By Chibita wa Duallo
Recently, Nabumali High School joined the long list of schools whose buildings have been going up in flames. The fury with which Nabumali went up in smoke, however, was more deadly than any other school arson before it.
This degree of destruction could be the reason why many people have reacted angrily and called for stern disciplinary measures against the student arsonists.
The other reason why the reaction to Nabumali’s burning buildings was more pronounced may relate to the cumulative effect. England House in Budo burned down, Nabisunsa Girls School lost a block, Gombe SSS, Kibuli SSS and the list is endless. The message being sent by the time of Nabumali’s burning had become loud and clear.
The criminal element in Nabumali was also clear. It was established beyond reasonable doubt that students had planned, discussed and executed the arson with brutal accuracy. The burnt building, moreover, housed part of the administration block academic and cash records, all of which went up in smoke.
In most of the previous school arsons the motive of the suspects were not very easy to come by. In the case of England House, for example, there was no angry student uprising prior to the fire. No suspect was found near the building and it has not yet been established whether the cause of the fire was an accident or an act of arson.
Some people have attributed the rising number of school infernos to laxity in discipline among our schools. This laxity is attributable to many factors, but the banning of corporal punishment and other traditional forms of disciplinary measures in schools feature prominently.
Others point to the increased emphasis of rights and privileges over duties and obligations as the major cause of indiscipline and impunity among students. While the education of students in their rights and privileges is not a bad thing, there has to be an equal emphasis on duties and responsibilities of a good citizen.
It should be made clear to students, like all other citizens, that certain acts constitute criminal offences. Arson is one of such acts. Students who behave in a manner which amount to criminal offences, should be subjected to the full force of the law. This should include prosecution and imprisonment where the evidence so requires.
Part of what confuses headteachers of secondary schools and sometimes the Police, is the semi-privileged nature of a students’ station in life. Students are neither tax paying adults nor are they necessarily minors. They fall somewhere in between. Some of them are adults who would be paying taxes if they were not students.
It is therefore imperative that the authorities should sort out the proper legal status of their students and deal with them harshly, in accordance with the law, whenever they cross the line between criminal offences and mere student delinquency.
Anybody who commits a criminal offence has to be subjected to the full force of the law. This is regardless of whether he is a student, minor or adult. To be sure, minors who commit offences have special places where they can be tried and confined. Children’s courts and remand homes are in place for such minor offenders.
Until students see their predecessors in crime serving a jail term and paying for their arson, these copycat offences are likely to continue. Suspension or expulsion of students from school is good punishment for breaking school rules like drinking alcohol, failing to put on school uniform or breaking school bounds.
For arson, however, and other common offences committed by rogue students like assaulting teachers or raping fellow students or other females in the school, the proper penalty is to be found in the Penal Code.
A student, therefore, who commits any of the offences stipulated in the Penal Code, will have, by that act, waived his/her legal immunity as a student. That student has to be treated like any other ordinary criminal in as far as prosecution and sentencing are concerned.
Ends

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