Who will save UPE schools in Kampala?
Jan 09, 2008
THE current mortality rate of government-owned primary schools in Kampala will soon leave us paying only lip service to Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Kampala.
By Cyprian Musoke
THE current mortality rate of government-owned primary schools in Kampala will soon leave us paying only lip service to Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Kampala.
Even before the storm kicked up by the offer of Shimoni Demonstration School land to Saudi investors, another, Nabagereka Primary school is on the line, this time sold by dubious “former registered proprietorsâ€. A private developer, who has allegedly bought school land, has given the school, one of the last UPE schools with over 350 pupils, notice to vacate the land by January 14.
Only Buganda Road Primary School, Nakivubo Blue and Nakasero Primary schools remain. But Nakasero is reportedly up for sale to an investor.
This will leave the remaining two struggling with the overwhelming numbers of pupils, who are scampering for the few remaining schools, after their contemporaries in terms of traditional curricular are gone to ghost investors who never make use of the land.
This is the same way that the other traditional Kampala schools slipped out of the Government’s hands to mysterious investors. By not disclosing the identities of the buyers for scrutiny, fake “investors†get hold of precious land titles, go and mortgage the land to try to finance their imagined investments, and when they fail, sell “their interest†to equally incapable investors, cut and run leaving us with the taste of bile.
By not investigating or disclosing the credit-worthiness of the potential investors, many people in the know, who would have forewarned the Government, are shut out, leaving the Government with a skewed deal.
This has in effect led to prime school plots becoming wastelands in the middle of town at a time of need for structures to house UPE. Incidents of pupils studying in deserted car garages that have been painted with the national flag and pictures of animals are now commonplace all over town. Is this the way to go for UPE?
Cries of overcrowded classrooms, few demoralised teachers and lack of office space and absence of teachers’ houses are not new, yet Kampala which is supposed to be the centre of learning in the country, continues to witness its few educational institutions going away.
Not long ago, I witnessed Kampala Central MP Erias Lukwago tussle it out on the floor of Parliament, with a petition from the parents, teachers and students of Bat Valley Primary School that is also being claimed by some disputed Asians.
Meanwhile, the person who allegedly bought the Nabagereka Primary School insists that he bought the land genuinely from the rightful owners and he is determined to develop it, “Whether they want or not.†If this does not border on impunity, then what is it? And who says educational institutions are not part development? Kyaggwe Road Primary School, Shimoni TTC and Shimoni Demonstration School closed down in the city centre over the last two years to give way to investors.
No investor has, however, made use of the land yet. Controversy still surrounds Bat Valley Primary School, where Kampala City Council and an Indian association are both vying for control. The Kisenyi community, led by Lukwago, should be supported in their bid to save one of the last few UPE schools in Kampala.
The law says a sitting tenant must be given first priority to develop the land. But these tenants have not been given any chance. Kampala mayor Nasser Sebaggala says KCC only owns the buildings but the land belongs to the Uganda Land Commission (ULC). Joshua Mayanja Nkangi, the ULC chairman says he is not aware of the pending sale of the land comprising of blocks 12,1478, 1479 and 1480. The Government has drafted a law, which seeks to protect both the landlords and the tenants. The Uganda Land Commission and Kampala City Council should come to the rescue of one of the remaining primary schools in Kampala.
The writer is a journalist
THE current mortality rate of government-owned primary schools in Kampala will soon leave us paying only lip service to Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Kampala.
Even before the storm kicked up by the offer of Shimoni Demonstration School land to Saudi investors, another, Nabagereka Primary school is on the line, this time sold by dubious “former registered proprietorsâ€. A private developer, who has allegedly bought school land, has given the school, one of the last UPE schools with over 350 pupils, notice to vacate the land by January 14.
Only Buganda Road Primary School, Nakivubo Blue and Nakasero Primary schools remain. But Nakasero is reportedly up for sale to an investor.
This will leave the remaining two struggling with the overwhelming numbers of pupils, who are scampering for the few remaining schools, after their contemporaries in terms of traditional curricular are gone to ghost investors who never make use of the land.
This is the same way that the other traditional Kampala schools slipped out of the Government’s hands to mysterious investors. By not disclosing the identities of the buyers for scrutiny, fake “investors†get hold of precious land titles, go and mortgage the land to try to finance their imagined investments, and when they fail, sell “their interest†to equally incapable investors, cut and run leaving us with the taste of bile.
By not investigating or disclosing the credit-worthiness of the potential investors, many people in the know, who would have forewarned the Government, are shut out, leaving the Government with a skewed deal.
This has in effect led to prime school plots becoming wastelands in the middle of town at a time of need for structures to house UPE. Incidents of pupils studying in deserted car garages that have been painted with the national flag and pictures of animals are now commonplace all over town. Is this the way to go for UPE?
Cries of overcrowded classrooms, few demoralised teachers and lack of office space and absence of teachers’ houses are not new, yet Kampala which is supposed to be the centre of learning in the country, continues to witness its few educational institutions going away.
Not long ago, I witnessed Kampala Central MP Erias Lukwago tussle it out on the floor of Parliament, with a petition from the parents, teachers and students of Bat Valley Primary School that is also being claimed by some disputed Asians.
Meanwhile, the person who allegedly bought the Nabagereka Primary School insists that he bought the land genuinely from the rightful owners and he is determined to develop it, “Whether they want or not.†If this does not border on impunity, then what is it? And who says educational institutions are not part development? Kyaggwe Road Primary School, Shimoni TTC and Shimoni Demonstration School closed down in the city centre over the last two years to give way to investors.
No investor has, however, made use of the land yet. Controversy still surrounds Bat Valley Primary School, where Kampala City Council and an Indian association are both vying for control. The Kisenyi community, led by Lukwago, should be supported in their bid to save one of the last few UPE schools in Kampala.
The law says a sitting tenant must be given first priority to develop the land. But these tenants have not been given any chance. Kampala mayor Nasser Sebaggala says KCC only owns the buildings but the land belongs to the Uganda Land Commission (ULC). Joshua Mayanja Nkangi, the ULC chairman says he is not aware of the pending sale of the land comprising of blocks 12,1478, 1479 and 1480. The Government has drafted a law, which seeks to protect both the landlords and the tenants. The Uganda Land Commission and Kampala City Council should come to the rescue of one of the remaining primary schools in Kampala.
The writer is a journalist