Museveni’s Challenge to Alumni: Return and build your schools

Alumni should contribute towards the development needs of their former schools, President Yoweri Museveni has counseled, saying the majority of old boys and girls are not peasants.

“The alumni of these institutions are educated people. If together with their children and families they contributed money to their former schools, it would be in billions,” Mr Museveni said at the Golden Jubilee celebrations for Maryhill High School on Saturday.

Giving an example of Nabumali High School in eastern Uganda which marked 100 years of existence two weeks back Mr Museveni said if the school received a Shs1million contribution from each of its 16000 old boys it would raise Shs16 billion.

“Government can do its work but alumni can also have a contribution because these are educated people [and] they are not peasants,” he said.
Mr Museveni contributed Shs80 million towards Maryhill High School building complex that will accommodate a library and laboratory among others. Shs30 million was given in cash.

Mr Museveni said schools while celebrating Golden jubilees and centenaries should not dwell on the past but remind themselves of the present and future needs of the country which he said is skilled labour force.

“During the colonial time schools trained officials for jobs like clerks and secretaries to help the colonialists and work in the civil service. Today civil service and others sectors like legal have been saturated,” he said, adding, “you shouldn’t continue training for areas that are saturated with employees. Public service has since long passed saturation point. Children must get proper career guidance; it’s wrong for government and parents to train someone who will not get a job.”

He said many professional and technical jobs are still vacant. Mr Museveni cited the example of scarcity of doctors, engineers and entrepreneurs.
“We need 17000 doctors but we have 2000 today. I see no possibility of filling these doctor jobs in the short run,” he said.

Mr Meseveni said managerial courses should be pursued by only those whose parents are rich and therefore do not need to look for jobs after education.

“If your father is rich you can go and study SWASA (Social Works and Social Administration) and then you come and manage your father property. But if you are a daughter of a poor person and looking for jobs please technology, skills and entrepreneurship are a must,” he said.

Mr Museveni said government will continue to build school infrastructure. Maryhill High School is among the 42 schools that government has chosen as centres of excellence.

The minister for Education and Sports Ms Jessica Alupo said Shs2.7 billion will be spent at the school.

The money will be used to build a multipurpose academic block, teachers’ ICT room, a four classroom block, a 300 seater library, students ICT centre and a block for all teachers houses each with two bedrooms and a sitting room.

Maryhill, a girls’ school, was founded in 1961 by Sisters of Mary and Joseph with the inspiration of Bishop Jean Ogez.

The Jubilee celebrations were marked under the theme. “For the Almighty Go has done great things for me Holly is his name (Luke 1.49)”.

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