Kimenyedde Church of Uganda primary school in Kimenyedde sub-county and Ngandu Roman Catholic Compulsory Education Community primary school in Mukono Central Division are in a sorry state, a few hours to the planned reopening of schools nationwide.
At Kimenyedde primary school, the three-classroom block leaks. The wall on the girl’s latrines has since also collapsed yet the stances lack doors. The school with 600 pupils received Shillings 1.5m from the government for renovation works.
The Head Teacher, Nathan Kalema, says that they used the money to buy handwashing facilities and slash bushes around the school. He says that they have asked district authorities to allow them to operate double-shift classes given the status of the school.
The situation at Ngandu primary is not any better. The four-classroom block developed cracks. One of the classes collapsed completely. The school has a single latrine, which is shared by the learner and teachers. Mukono municipality has only allocated Shillings 450,000 for the renovation works.
The area LC I Chairperson, Ibrahim Kitenda says that the school is among the first community learning centres established in the area and commissioned by the Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II on May 5, 1993. He is dismayed that the government has failed it despite the community efforts to sustain it.
“I will be committing myself to become a liar if I tell you that as the local council we shall allow it to open under this sorry condition,” Kitenda told URN.
Mukono Mayor, Elisa Mukasa Nkoyoyo, says that they have submitted a supplementary budget of Shillings 140million to renovate Ngandu primary school.
Mukono District Education Officer, Rashid Kikomeko, says that they have designed a program to renovate all government-aided schools. He notes that they have disbursed Shillings 1.5 million for simple renovations and the rest including working on rooftops shall be done in the due course.
The Mukono Municipality Member of Parliament, Betty Nambooze Bakireke wants the government to earmark funds in the shortest time possible to carry out serious renovation of schools to provide a conducive study environment in public schools.
