No major hitches as PLE starts

Nationwide- Bukedea could be the district with the oldest PLE candidate in the ongoing examinations with 51- year-old Joseph Iterot joining 2,962 in the district to sit exams.

Mr Iterot, a UPDF soldier attached to Olilim Army Barracks in Katakwi District, is sitting his exams at Kabarwa Primary School in Malera Sub-county. The father of 12 said his decision attracted mixed views from various sections of the society.
“When I decided to go back to school, most people thought I was crazy. But now most of them are envious of my plan,” Mr Iterot said.

The ‘pupil’ is very optimistic that he will get a first grade in the ongoing PLE examination. He also applauds the army for allowing him time to get back to school.
His 17-year- old son, James Omutos, with whom he is sitting the same exams, says he was surprised when his father enrolled in the same school for further studies.

“My father actually did not inform me that he planned to go back to school. I only saw him one morning when he was introduced at the assembly,” James Omutoj said.
Another 30-year-old candidate was one of the 47 candidates sitting the PLE at Fr Bilbao Primary School in Moyo District yesterday.

Mr George Mawa, a father of three, is an issuing officer at Nile Coach Bus Service in Moyo Town taxi park.
Meanwhile, as examinations went on, a spot check by the Daily Monitor in various examination centres across the country revealed most schools started their exam by 9am. However, delays in transporting examination materials were reported in some schools with poor road network.

Candidates at Nyakabale Primary School in Bwera Sub-county, Kasese District had to wait for nearly two hours following the delay in delivery of exam papers.
The Mathematics exam started a few minutes to 11am after being delivered late. The district education officer, Mr George Mayinja, blamed the delay on the bad roads which became slippery due to the heavy down pour in the morning hours.

Transportation issues
He said the pick-up distributing the examination papers could not make it to the school, prompting suppliers to deliver them on foot. Nyakabale Primary School is located about five kilometres from the Uganda National Examinations stores at Mpondwe Border Post Police Station.
This was re-echoed by Uneb executive Secretary Mathew Bukenya who said: “We usually get such complaints on the first day because we engage different people who don’t know how to dodge traffic jam. Some take longer routes for safety reasons but we promise to address that on day two,” he said by telephone yesterday.
A Uneb official, who preferred anonymity to speak freely on the matter, said a short delay of between 10 minutes to 30 minutes was deliberate to avoid leakage of exams during transportation between storage centres and schools.

In Luweero District, four examination centres accessed the morning exam papers late following mix ups at different exam storage stations.

According to the district education officer, Ms Florence Ssekitoleko Bbosa, the papers for St Mary’s Kakinzi, St Joseph Ndibulungi and Nalongo primary schools had been transported to a storage station which is far from the schools.
At St Joseph Ndibulungi Primary School, the papers were delayed by an hour after the motor cycle on which the exam papers were being transported broke down.
Mr Stanley Okia, the head teacher Naalya Hillside P/S in Wakiso District, said his candidates started 40 minutes late yet they converged in examinations rooms on time .
A similar scenario was reported at Kitante P/S where 375 candidates who are sitting for the exams started 35 minutes after 9am.
In Kiboga, the police arrested a head teacher for allegedly involving herself in examination malpractices.
The CIID officer at Kiboga Central Police Station, Mr Stephen Ssemanda said the suspect allegedly brought in a Senior One student to sit the exam on behalf of her biological son and a pupil of the same school.

Compiled by Al-Mahdi Ssenkabirwa, Shabibah Nakirigya, Thembo Kahungu Misairi, Dan Wandera, Robert Muhereza, Colleb Mugume, Emmanuel Okwii, Cissy Makumbi, Robert Owot, Andrew Musinguzi, Scovin Iceta, Martin Odong & Isaac Okot.