Summary:
- Minister Musasizi claims that when the FDC was Uganda’s main opposition party, their political strategies included targeting the NRM government’s socio-economic transformation initiatives, such as UPE.
RUBANDA: State Minister of Finance (General Duties), Henry Musasizi, has accused members of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party of undermining the Universal Primary Education (UPE) program.
Minister Musasizi claims that when the FDC was Uganda’s main opposition party, their political strategies included targeting the NRM government’s socio-economic transformation initiatives, such as UPE. He argued that this approach contributed to a negative perception of the program among some Ugandans.
Addressing locals on Sunday at Kakariisa Catholic Church in Nangara Parish, Nyamweru Sub-County, Rubanda District, Minister Musasizi, who also serves as Rubanda East MP, commented, “FDC’s politics of sabotage made people think that children attending UPE schools couldn’t succeed in life, but that is simply not true.”
Reflecting on his own educational background, Minister Musasizi noted that he began his studies in a church school in Rubanda District, where pupils used old mats and lacked trained teachers.
“We sat on old mats during lessons, and our school didn’t have trained teachers, yet here we are. UPE schools today are much better equipped, with qualified teachers and the necessary facilities,” he stated.
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Minister Musasizi further expressed concern that some parents, influenced by misconceptions, were selling land to pay for private school fees, ignoring the free education offered by the government at both primary and secondary levels. He encouraged religious and community leaders to promote UPE and Universal Secondary Education (USE) schools to help shift this mindset.
“Parents need only to provide uniforms and lunch for their children. Government covers the rest,” Musasizi assured.
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Recently, the RDC Secretariat Commissioner for Karamoja, Fred Bamwiine, voiced similar concerns to leaders in Greater Kabale District. Despite UPE’s introduction nearly 27 years ago, Bamwiine noted, many Ugandans aged 20-25 still lack basic literacy. He cited a recent Local Defense Unit (LDU) recruitment drive where academic qualifications were waived due to a shortage of qualified applicants in certain sub-counties.
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The UPE initiative, launched in January 1997 following President Yoweri Museveni’s commitment to free primary education for economically vulnerable children, was later supplemented by the Universal Secondary Education (USE) policy in 2007. However, performance challenges have often made public schools appear inferior to private ones.
Nevertheless, government officials maintain that UPE’s core mission is to boost literacy rather than academic ranking. Deputy Director General of the Internal Security Organization (ISO), Col. Emmy Katabazi, remarked in a media engagement earlier this year, “If all adult Ugandans could read and write, that would be a mission accomplished for the UPE program.”
