Lukooya praised the school’s headteacher, Fredrick Kabonge, whom he promoted from classroom teacher more than a decade ago in recognition of his outstanding performance.
Lukooya said he would evaluate the performance of school heads after the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) releases the results early next year, arguing that school leadership must be judged by learners’ academic achievements.
He said he had adopted a similar approach during his previous tenure as district chairperson about 10 years ago, promoting classroom teachers who performed well and returning underperforming headteachers to classroom duties.
“During my reign as the district chairperson 10 years ago, I promoted classroom teachers to positions of school heads and demoted headteachers back to classroom teachers on the basis of results presented by an individual,” Lukooya said.
He made the remarks on Saturday during prayers to dedicate Primary Seven candidates at Kawuku Boarding Primary School in Kawuku Village, Kimenyedde sub-county.
Lukooya said Mukono had previously ranked among Uganda’s top three districts in education and other service delivery indicators but accused subsequent leaders of allowing public servants to become complacent.
He pointed to Kawuku Boarding Primary School as evidence that committed leadership could deliver strong academic results even in rural communities.
“Parents at Kawuku Boarding Primary School can bear me witness that, despite the fact that this school is deep in the village, it has consistently been among the best schools in the district, competing with private schools in town,” he said.
Lukooya praised the school’s headteacher, Fredrick Kabonge, whom he promoted from classroom teacher more than a decade ago in recognition of his outstanding performance. He encouraged teachers to demonstrate commitment, saying those who excelled could be considered for leadership positions when vacancies arose.
Headteachers warned over illegal charges
Lukooya also cautioned school administrators against imposing unauthorised charges on pupils and sending them home for failing to pay.
He said his team, working with security agencies, was monitoring schools and cited the recent arrest of a headteacher accused of registering privately sponsored candidates as government candidates for PLE.
He said the practice involved collecting examination fees from parents before registering the pupils under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme, through which the government pays their examination fees.
“Imagine charging parents UNEB fees and then registering the candidates under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme, through which the government pays their examination fees. That is illegal, and those involved should take this as a warning,” he said.
Clergy caution parents on smartphone use
The chairperson of the House of Clergy in Mukono Diocese, Rev. Edward Muyomba, urged parents to regulate their children’s access to smartphones, warning that unrestricted use could expose them to pornography, sexually explicit content and other harmful material.
Muyomba said parents often had little control over what their children accessed online and called for measures to protect minors from inappropriate digital content.
He also questioned parents who report school administrators to Resident District Commissioners and the Minister for Local Government, Balaam Barugahara, over charges for pupils’ meals.
Muyomba defended reasonable contributions towards school feeding, arguing that children who spend long hours at school without adequate food risk developing health complications and struggling academically.
He said Church of Uganda bishops in Buganda had agreed that parents with children in church-owned schools should contribute towards lunch or consider alternative schools if they were unwilling to meet the requirement.
“We have seen children develop life-threatening illnesses just because of spending days at school hungry. The Church cannot allow that to continue, when we are just looking on,” he said.
School seeks facilities as enrolment rises
Kawuku Boarding Primary School headteacher Fredrick Kabonge said the school was struggling with inadequate desks, the absence of a library and a lack of a main hall as enrolment continued to grow.
Kabonge said the school’s population had increased from 300 pupils when he took over in 2020 to 840.
In response, Lukooya pledged to construct a multipurpose hall at the school in the next financial year. He also donated 200 hand hoes and promised to provide computers to help pupils acquire basic computer skills.
The ceremony also featured pupils’ performances, including songs, dances and poems, which entertained parents and other guests.
