Dishonesty, cheating and individualism killing Uganda’s moral fabric

Uganda is trapped in a corner, which will require God’s grace and help. Children learn to lie and cheat right from their families and throughout educational system. Lying and cheating go together - one cannot be without the other.
The culture of telling children stories at bedtime is no more. After dinner, families used to say evening prayers before telling folk stories to children: “Once upon a time, there was ….” These stories would go on until the children fell asleep. Parents also watched children play and even join them in games. These activities helped children bond with their parents for learning and nurturing purposes. Children were not allowed to come home with other children’s property: “If you steal God will punish you”. So children grew up in fear of God. At meal time, a family said prayers before meals and shared food from a common plate. In this way a child grew up learning to fear God, share, be honest and respect one another. This is no more.

Today, the parents have less time for their children. The culture now is for both parents to chase for money at any cost and leave children for caretakers. The children are exposed to all sorts of evil materials at a tender age – these include pornographic materials, violence, etc. Today Justice and Rights Association of Uganda argue that increasing accessibility of contraceptives and safe abortion to teenagers would reduce the rate of teenage pregnancies. Recently in a newspaper, a mother was seen illustrating the use of female condoms to girls of seven to 10 years old. The end does not justify the means.

The situation is getting worse: watch any TV channel or read newspapers and you will understand the Ugandan society today. There is fighting everywhere: tit for tat, etc. Recently, senior security officers were being probed over alleged involvement in crimes, including armed robberies and murders.
At school, children learn the cunning behaviour of the teachers. In recent primary examination malpractices, it was the teachers aiding students to cheat. Students confessed that they used WhatsApp to cheat PLE. Examination malpractices in Uganda cut across the whole education system. These examination malpractices and associated breakdown of the integrity of our academic system are largely a symptom of moral crisis that has affected our society.
There has been an article circulating on social media that at the entrance gate of a university in South Africa, the following message was posted for contemplation: “Destroying any nation does not require the use of atomic bombs or the use of long range missiles. It only requires lowering the quality of education and allowing cheating in the examinations by the students”.

Patients will die at the hands of such doctors, buildings will collapse at the hand of such engineers, money will be lost at the hand of such economists and accountants, justice is lost at the hands of such judges, humanity dies at the hands of such religious scholars and pastors and so on. In Uganda, it is possible that more than half of our MPs are not qualified: Many people try to cheat to go to Parliament – a temple of law and justice. What do you expect from such liars? It is true the saying, ‘The collapse of education is the collapse of the nation’.
Teachers have been implicated under our watch in sexual harassment and being responsible for teenage pregnancies and abortions. People are scandalised when they see people of honor are incoherent. They say one thing and do another. Pope Francis said, “Scandal can kill: it kills hope, it kills families, and it kills hearts”.
So where do we go from here if families and schools have collapsed? Correcting the anomaly will take several generations. We have to go back to the basics of Christianity. Christian missionary approach was to develop both the spirit and the body of an individual – a holistic approach. When the government took over missionary schools, they only put emphasis on material aspects.

I have heard members of the government saying that the issues of the soul should be left to religious leaders and material issues to government. Yet we accept that Uganda is a Christian country 85 per cent.
We need a system which persuades bad people, ‘sinners’ to repent. We should do exactly what Jesus did: He ate with sinners. He was in the company of sinners. There are people, who hoard money or property when others have nothing.
Rev. Father Ronchi quoted by ZENIT staff said, “According to a mysterious divine rule: When my bread becomes our bread, then what is little becomes enough. Hunger begins when I keep my bread to myself…”
He said, “There is no need to multiply it, it would be sufficient just to distribute it, starting with ourselves”. The problem is that Ugandans want to show off, but even the best dancer leaves the stage. Government should take a bold step to give up schools to founding bodies for holistic education.

Dr Okoth is a concerned Christian
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