By Leonard Kamugisha Akida,
KAMPALA
The Uganda Young Democrats (UYD), a youth wing of the Democratic Party (DP) has petitioned the deputy speaker of parliament, Rt. Hon. Thomas Bangirana Tayebwa seeking for a policy to regulate fees charged by schools in the country.
At a party press conference on Tuesday, the UYD President Ismail Kiirya also the acting DP spokesperson said they were going to submit their petition to parliament expressing their disgruntlement to the house over exorbitant and unfair fees charged from parents in both private and government schools.
“As Uganda Young Democrats (UYD), we are today the 20th/02/2024 petitioning the speaker to bring the Minimum and a Maximum school fees charge which will cut a cross the country. But schools right now have a liberty to think of any amount to increase every term without hesitation,” Kiirya told Journalists.
According to the youth, schools are taking advantage of the absence of the law on regulation of school fee to manipulate the already poverty-stricken parents.
In their petition that was handed to and received by the office of the deputy speaker, the petitioners demand that parliament puts in place a policy that will set minimum and maximum fee to be charged by all schools across the country despite their ownership statuses.
“Schools are using this opportunity to manipulate parents by charging exorbitant fees which is totally unfair. We do appreciate the free market economy we have in the country, but we also believe there are some fee charges which cannot be tolerated in Uganda,” the petition read in parts.
This comes at a time when the Internet is washed with different school circulars indicating high school fees and other requirements some charging about 3 million shillings for a kindergarten pupil and secondary schools.
The youth said in petition that some schools have gone an extra mile to demand for payments to nill balances while others ask for payments in dollar currency something they say is unfair to parents who are already struggling financially.
