48 pupils married off in Tororo
A TOTAL of 48 girls have been withdrawn from primary schools in Mulanda, Kirewa and Rubongi sub-counties in Tororo district and married off since August last year.
By Moses Nampala
A TOTAL of 48 girls have been withdrawn from primary schools in Mulanda, Kirewa and Rubongi sub-counties in Tororo district and married off since August last year.
The girls were in upper primary classes (Primary Four to Primary Seven), an audit carried out in the government-aided schools has revealed.
During a tour of the schools, district leaders discovered that early marriages greatly hindered education in Tororo.
The purpose of the tour is to investigate why rural government-aided primary schools perform poorly in nationals exams.
The district leaders involved in the tour include LC5 chairperson Emmanuel Osuna, resident district commissioner Samuel Mpimbaza Hashaka, his deputy Richard Gulume and the chief administrative officer, Felix Esoku.
Kirewa sub-county chief Christopher Okengere said eight girls from the sub-county had been married off since August last year.
Bernard Onyango, the head teacher of Mifumi Primary School in Kirewa sub-county, said three pupils were discontinued a few weeks to the final examinations and they were married off.
He added that the girls were pregnant.
Peter Obbo, the head teacher of Kierewa Primary School, said a girl was married off two days before the final examinations to a family next to the school.
Both head teachers said they reported the cases to the authorities but no action was taken.
Hashaka instructed the officer in-charge of Kirewa Police post to arrest the perpetrators.
A TOTAL of 48 girls have been withdrawn from primary schools in Mulanda, Kirewa and Rubongi sub-counties in Tororo district and married off since August last year.
The girls were in upper primary classes (Primary Four to Primary Seven), an audit carried out in the government-aided schools has revealed.
During a tour of the schools, district leaders discovered that early marriages greatly hindered education in Tororo.
The purpose of the tour is to investigate why rural government-aided primary schools perform poorly in nationals exams.
The district leaders involved in the tour include LC5 chairperson Emmanuel Osuna, resident district commissioner Samuel Mpimbaza Hashaka, his deputy Richard Gulume and the chief administrative officer, Felix Esoku.
Kirewa sub-county chief Christopher Okengere said eight girls from the sub-county had been married off since August last year.
Bernard Onyango, the head teacher of Mifumi Primary School in Kirewa sub-county, said three pupils were discontinued a few weeks to the final examinations and they were married off.
He added that the girls were pregnant.
Peter Obbo, the head teacher of Kierewa Primary School, said a girl was married off two days before the final examinations to a family next to the school.
Both head teachers said they reported the cases to the authorities but no action was taken.
Hashaka instructed the officer in-charge of Kirewa Police post to arrest the perpetrators.