Bugisu Muslim leaders say repeated interventions by Jimmy Nambiro over parental contributions at Nkoma Secondary School risk demoralising teachers and affecting students’ academic performance.
Muslim leaders in Bugisu have accused Jimmy Nambiro, President Yoweri Museveni’s Private Secretary for Education and Skilling, of disrupting learning at Nkoma Secondary School in Mbale City through repeated interventions over supplementary payments collected from parents.
Sheikh Issa Ahmad Masaba Pole, the Kadhi of Bugisu Muslim District Council, said the interventions risk demoralising teachers and affecting students’ academic performance during the third term.
The dispute centres on contributions collected from parents to meet the school’s operational costs, including paying teachers who are not on the government payroll.
Sheikh Masaba said Nkoma Secondary School has more than 7,000 students but only 168 teachers, 80 of whom are paid by the government. He said parental contributions help the school pay the remaining teachers and support staff and meet other operational expenses.
“When the President said parents should not pay school fees, he did not say they should not buy other requirements. The money available is not even enough to provide lunch for the children,” Sheikh Masaba said.
He questioned why Nambiro had repeatedly focused on Nkoma SS when other government-aided schools, including Mbale Secondary School, also operate in the city.
“Every day, I hear that police have gone to Nkoma SS. There are many government schools here in Mbale, including Mbale SS and others. Why is he focusing all his energy on Nkoma?” he asked.
Sheikh Masaba also accused Nambiro of embarrassing the school’s headteacher before students over a decision to send learners home to remind their parents about Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) contributions.
He argued that the school administration should be allowed to address its financial challenges through established management structures, including the Board of Governors and the PTA.
“If he identifies anything wrong at the school, he should first sit with the Muslim leaders responsible for the institution instead of using his position in government to disrupt learning,” he said.
The Kadhi warned that continued interventions could affect this year’s examination results, saying Nambiro should be held accountable for any poor performance he believes may result from disruptions to teaching.
Ali Waboga, chairman of the Bugisu Muslim District Council, also criticised Nambiro’s focus on Nkoma SS, arguing that the school is not a skilling institution despite Nambiro’s responsibilities as head of the State House Education Desk.
Waboga said the interventions had demoralised teachers and created an environment that could undermine learning during the third term.
The Muslim leaders warned that similar disputes could arise at other Muslim-founded schools under the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, including Lwakhakha, Bufumbo, Bukonde, Hamidan Girls and Nakaloke.
The dispute comes amid a broader government crackdown on unauthorised charges in schools implementing Universal Primary Education and Universal Secondary Education. In August, the State House Education Desk warned school administrators against imposing illegal charges on learners covered by the programmes. <Cite refs={[“turn355107search4”,“turn355107search6”]}/>
Section 10 of the Education (Pre-Primary, Primary and Post-Primary) Act, 2008 prohibits charges for education under the universal education programmes, while allowing voluntary contributions for emergencies or urgent school needs. It also prohibits denying learners access to education for failure to make such contributions.
The controversy highlights the tension between government efforts to enforce free universal education and schools’ concerns about meeting operational costs with limited funding.