Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) has warned schools against blocking Senior Four candidates from sitting their Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) examinations over outstanding school fees, saying learners should not suffer because of financial disputes between schools and parents.
Speaking to the media in Kampala as the examinations commenced, Sharon Arach Oyat, the UPC spokesperson, urged school administrators to allow all registered candidates to sit their papers and pursue fee recovery separately from parents.
“Education is a right, not a privilege. No Ugandan child should miss an examination because of fees,” Arach Oyat said.
The party said it was concerned about reports from previous examination years in which candidates were allegedly prevented from sitting examinations or diverted to other centres because of unpaid fees.
Arach Oyat acknowledged the financial challenges facing schools but said these should not be resolved at the expense of learners who have spent four years preparing for their final secondary school examinations.
The UPC also called on UNEB to ensure that examination irregularities are addressed at examination centres by invigilators instead of withholding candidates’ results after the examinations.
The party said withholding results creates unnecessary anxiety and disrupts the futures of learners who may not have participated in any malpractice.
Oyat urged UNEB, invigilators and security agencies to remain vigilant against examination malpractice while handling candidates professionally and avoiding the intimidation of innocent learners.
The party warned that examination malpractice undermines the credibility of Uganda’s education system and compromises the quality of the country’s human resource.
Beyond the examinations, the UPC called on the government to increase investment in education, citing inadequate instructional materials, unfavourable learning environments and the financial difficulties parents face in keeping their children in school.
It urged the government to adopt what it described as a pro-people education policy, backed by meaningful funding and effective school inspections, to ensure that no child or region is left behind.
The party said equitable investment in schools, teachers and instructional materials was essential for national development and cohesion.