|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
By Hillary Alithum
ZOMBO: Paidha primary teachers college that was established in 1982 as a government founded college in the THEN Paidha Demonstration primary school now Mvugu upper primary school ,(church of Uganda founded primary school) was in 1989 transferred on 80.9 hectares of land in Dwonga ward ,Paidha town council (current location) has
outlived it’s significance ,as government takes a drastic move to allow the National Teachers policy 2019 to came in to play by phasing out the 23 non Core primary teachers training colleges across the country in a bid to set standards and check on quality in the education sector.
To this effect political, religious, cultural and other education sector stakeholders in Greater Nebbi districts congregated in several meetings to devise alternative productive use of the facilities, assets and liabilities of Paidha primary teachers college, two factions arose from the meetings demanding for A Core PTC and Kyambogo university Study center respectively with arguments on impacts that will be created .
On the 31st of May ,2023 Zombo district local government under the stewardship of Oyullu James Oruna the LC5 chairperson passed a resolution to allow Kyambogo university to establish a study centre at the former Paidha primary teachers college, it’s upon this rich pronouncement that Kyambogo university,on the 19/07/2023, arranged a consultative meeting with leaders and education sector stakeholders of the district so that findings and recommendations of the consultation is submitted to the house of senate of the university for possible actions .
Dr.Stephen Kasumba ,who is the Dean of Distance Education , E-learning and learning centres at Kyambogo university told the leaders ,how his mixed views and perceptions about Zombo changed when he realized the leaders spoke one voice to request for establishment of the study center.
“if you don’t have education facilities within your location,it becomes expensive and unaffordable, Soroti university was established and the people have the same socio economic dynamics like Zombo ,money is scarce , people struggling to get students through O and A levels, when it comes to university traveling to Kampala has become very expensive and accommodation costly” Kasumba said .
The leaders are forecasting economic empowerment and development initiative s for the host communities in terms of business and job creation . Onencan Sadiki , District councilor representing Paidha town council said ,”Education standard is going to improve, job opportunities for the people , economically we shall empowered and our mothers will sell pan cakes to the students and houses shall be rented “.
The fractioned Stakeholders have thinly failed in discussions of autonomy in scenarios of an institution being government founded or funded . Wapokraw John Paskal , former LCV chairperson of Greater Nebbi district revealed how discussions on the autonomy of the institution fractioned the population ,” once you talk in favor of the university or Core PTC , you are labelled to be political or religious respectively ,there is nothing of that sort we are fighting for that place to become a university “.
The sentences in the Memorandum of Understanding between government and church in events of land ownership only connects the dots on grounds of appreciating coexistence , not on developments and purpose of facilities introduced on the land by government and it qualifies it to be a government founded entity .
Oyullu James ,LCV chairperson of Zombo district told the team of delegates from Kyambogo university the urgency with which they need Kyambogo university in the region of West Nile.”we can request government to give components of Core PTC within the university but my people are in need of the university tomorrow, because they will benefit from cheap accommodation, feeding and it will be payment of tuition only “.
The district leaders now await pronouncement of the house of senate of Kyambogo university on the findings and recommendations to establish a university study centre at the former Paidha primary teachers college .
