I can't believe my son had alcohol in his suitcase
Sep 21, 2012
In most schools, there are items that are banned, but students get creative and will go to any length to smuggle them in. Consequently, suitcases are turned upside down at the beginning of term to find these illegal items.
By Stella Naigino
In most schools, there are items that are banned, but students get creative and will go to any length to smuggle them in. Consequently, suitcases are turned upside down at the beginning of term to find these illegal items. School owners argue that such items interfere with students’ academic performance...
When David Mutyaba escorted his son Richard to school, he was convinced that his son had only packed what the school expected him to carry.
Little did he know that his son was capable of carrying things that were not accepted by the school that would cause him problems and embarrassment.
To Mutyaba’s surprise, tot packs of waragi were found in Richard’s suitcase. They were found sealed in a biscuit box hidden among biscuits.
Mutyaba was asked to explain why there was waragi in his son’s suitcase, but he was dumbfounded. All he felt was confusion because he could not believe what was happening.
Richard was a Senior Six student, who had already been registered by the school to sit for the UNEB exams.
After a long discussion with the headteacher, he was advised to return home with his son. Richard would not step into the school premises until UNEB time when he would sit for his final exams.
Mutyaba was crushed at the news. He regretted not taking time to check his son’s suitcase but it was too late to save his son from being expelled.
Like Mutyaba, most parents are bound to face the same consequences just because they tend to ignore doing this small thing, notes Mother Kibuuka, the head teacher of Gayaza Junior.
She says it is important for parents to check their children’s suitcases before they return to school and even after school.
“They can carry something that does not belong to them, so if you checked, a parent is able to know what they went with to school. It also helps you know how they acquired the new item, which is for the good of you and your child,” notes Kibuuka.
This also helps you know what your child is capable of doing and not doing. Some students are expelled for theft in school, but parents refute the allegations because they do not know some characteristics.
She says some students are given things like phones by their boyfriends or girlfriends, which come without the consent of the parent.
She adds that realising this early enough gives the parent time to deal with the vice, other than leaving it up to the teachers to let you know, which can be embarrassing.
Victor Okello, the headteacher of Bishop Cipriano Kihangire in Luzira, says students carry so many undesirable things to school. It is the reason for the checks right at the gate at the beginning of the school term.
Okello says students carry phones, skimpy clothes, cameras, candles, make up and so many other things, depending on their interests.
“Even when it is stated clearly in the circular, that once found with such things, it will lead to suspension or expulsion, students still devise a way of carrying them. Parents should help teachers check their children before they return to school,” Okello pleads.
He adds: “These young boys and girls need guidance and encouragement, so check them and once you discover anything not relevant at school, speak to them and make them understand why such things are irrelevant.”
Okello says things like radios and phones that students smuggle into schools divert their attention from academics to bragging about what they have, which could have long term consequences on a child’s academic journey.
He explains that schools ban certain items for a reason. For example candles, which he says are the leading cause of fires in schools. When students get careless in dorms. He advises that students obey these rules because in most cases, the school has their best interests at heart.
Okello reveals that during the course of the term, some schools conduct an abrupt check of students’ belongings and so many illegal things are discovered.
“This is why schools check and even open up boxes of milk, biscuits and anything packed just not to take chances. Students are very creative,” Okello notes.