Tororo district fails to pay secondary teachers

By Anthony Mugeere NO salaries for two months! That is the situation in Tororo district where secondary school teachers have had to scratch the blackboard for 60 days and more without payment. Mr. Sylvester Oboth, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), says the finance ministry released sh31.2m instead of sh134.7m, leaving a shortfall of sh103.4m for secondary school teachers’ salaries in the district. The term ended last week and nobody knows whether the teachers will get their pay before the beginning of the third term. The Kampala University saga provided another episode when five founder members directed Prof. Badru Kateregga, the Vice Chancellor, to return the property he removed from the Kansanga campus. The directors also disassociated themselves from Kateregga’s action and asked him to hand over the Kampala University licence to the new university management. Meanwhile, the proprietors of the new Kampala International University stepped up their preparations to open on October 1 by setting up a regional office in Mbarara town. More regional offices are expected to open in Kasese, Arua and Mbale. The Makerere University Business School (MUBS) held its first graduation ceremony with the award of diplomas and degrees to 3,444 graduands. The ceremony, presided over by President Yoweri Museveni covered all graduands between 1996 and 2001. The cruel hand of death claimed the life of one of Uganda’s long serving teacher. Mr. Daniel Baguma, who taught for spent 31 years will not only be missed by his former students and workmates. The whole country joins his family as we mourn one of the country’s education icons. Tragedy nearly befell Kiwagama PS, Jinja district when a building in which over 50 pupils were studying collapsed after a heavy downpour. Thank God, the pupils fled before the building gave way but when shall we have the last of such death traps in the name of classrooms? In other news, Makerere University announced plans to build two new halls of residence to cope with the increasing student population. The National Book Week Festival closed on Saturday. The activities included the children’s reading tent where children won prizes for painting and writing stories. ends