Parents, students storm school over withheld 2023 UCE results

A group of parents on Friday stormed St Augustine Senior Secondary School in Nakifuma County, Mukono District demanding for Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) results for their children who sat examinations last year.
The Uganda National Examinations Board (Uneb) withheld results for 19 candidates of the school citing examination malpractices during their Physics practical paper.

Parents led by Ms Monica Nakijjoba stormed the office of the school director, Dr Martin Bbuye demanding answers following the failed release of the  results from Uneb, stating that efforts to have clear information from the school administration  have all been turned down which  provoked their anger.

“We’ve made several attempts to meet and discuss with the school director about the fate of our children but he declined our call stating that we’re not so special to keep demanding for explanations from him which has really irritated us because we paid fees to zero balances from our hard earned money which grants us the right to seek answers,” Ms Nakijjoba explained.

Mr Arthur Kabugo, also a parent at the same school, noted that the school administration has not taken the initiative to meet parents and explain to them what exactly happened to the exam results of their students. Since UCE results were released by Uneb in February, it is the acting school head teacher who has been inviting their children for different meetings, some of which were held at Uneb headquarters in Ntinda, a Kampala suburb but they have remained in suspense as parents.

“We’ve toiled to bring our children up to this level and as parents we must be in the know of whatever is happening in the lives of our children. We want the Ministry of Education, the Uneb and the government to apprehend and also revoke licenses of schools whose  administrators mislead learners to engage in acts of exam malpractices ” he said.

Ms Brendah Nanganda, another parent, noted that the school director asked affected parents to work together  hunt the Physics teacher who is accused of masterminding the  cheating of examinations.
“Asking parents to produce the teacher involved in the examination malpractice was so unfair,” she said.
Yusuf Katula and Jovia Namulira, both former candidates at the school said they are uncertain about their future.

“We want this settled so that we can also continue with our studies, but the director asked us to produce the Physics teacher who was implicated in the cheating yet we don’t know his whereabouts. When we went to Uneb they showed to us trial papers and the names of the teacher which differ from those of the one who was teaching  us at school ,” Mr Katula said.

In a bitter verbal exchange with parents, Dr Bbuye revealed that the affected children  cheated in examinations when they presented similar answers for a practical Physics paper and engagements with Uneb officials have been ongoing but nothing conclusive has been reached yet.

“What makes you think you’re very special to even start asking me questions about your children’s results? Your children cheated, yes they involved themselves in examination malpractice with the Physics teacher and now ask them where the teacher is because for us we don’t even know him,” he said.
Efforts to speak to Uneb spokesperson ,Ms Jennifer Kalule Musamba were futile as she could not pick our repeated telephone calls to her known phone number.