Bulambuli MP questions government position on school charges

[Archival Sense]

Hon. Emmanuel Biara Wepukhulu (courtesy photo)

Napak District’s decision to stop government-aided schools from imposing a range of charges has exposed a disagreement over how schools should be funded before government increases capitation grants.

On September 17, Napak Chief Administrative Officer Robert Abia Owiili directed head teachers of government-aided schools to stop charging parents for PTA contributions, development projects, examinations, registration, boarding and other fees. The directive followed complaints raised during community engagements about charges imposed on learners.

Local Government Minister Balaam Barugahara welcomed the directive and urged other districts to follow it. He said charges in government schools should only be voluntary and approved within the framework of the Ministry of Education.

However, Bulambuli County MP Emmanuel Biara Wepukhulu (NRM) has challenged Barugahara’s position, arguing that it does not reflect guidance given by President Yoweri Museveni to the NRM Parliamentary Caucus in August.

Biara said Museveni advised MPs that schools should continue collecting approved contributions until government increases capitation grants in the next financial year. He questioned whether government was operating under a common position or whether different officials were issuing conflicting directives.

“The headteachers will not sustain the schools for even one month,” Biara warned if parents stop contributing before capitation funding is increased.

Hon. Balaam Barugahara Ateenyi (courtesy photo)

The issue is complicated by what the law itself provides.

Section 10 of the Education (Pre-Primary, Primary and Post-Primary) Act prohibits any person or agency from levying or ordering a charge for education in a school implementing Universal Primary Education (UPE) or Universal Post-Primary Education and Training (UPPET), which covers the Universal Secondary Education programme. A violation can attract a fine of up to 50 currency points, imprisonment for up to one year, or both.

At the same time, the law allows schools to receive voluntary contributions from parents and well-wishers to deal with emergencies or urgent matters. A learner cannot be sent away from school or denied education for failing to make such a contribution.

For primary schools, the regulations are more specific. They prohibit tuition and PTA charges and bar schools from collecting money for classrooms, teachers’ houses, latrines, uniforms, textbooks, furniture, tests and examinations. The regulations provide limited exceptions, including certain administrative and utility charges in urban councils and voluntary payments for midday meals.

The August NRM Caucus meeting, meanwhile, officially resolved to study the issue of school fees in public schools and make proposals on how government could address the challenge. The publicly available record does not state that the caucus authorised schools to continue compulsory charges. (NRM)

The dispute therefore centres on a practical question: if government-aided schools cannot compel parents to pay, but existing capitation funding is insufficient to meet their needs, how should schools meet those costs?

Biara wants the Napak directive applied from the next financial year, when he says increased capitation should be available. Barugahara, meanwhile, is backing enforcement of the existing free-education provisions.