Prime
Inside Makerere campus troubles
IVORY TOWER: Politics is threatening the institution.
Intrigue and government manipulations are turning Makerere University into a boiling pot of political drama with the students guild becoming the latest pawn in what increasingly looks like a high stakes game to manage opinion at the country’s largest and oldest institution of higher learning.
Not entirely an unprecedented state of affairs. Makerere has a long history of being the proving ground for opposing political forces to make their mark ahead of national political contests. Former presidents Dr Apollo Milton Obote and Idi Amin all tested the mettle using students politics as a proxy.
Running confusion
Today the university has been engulfed by confusion for three weeks now since the shooting to death of two Kenyan students by a security guard during guild campaigns at a students’ hostel. After the shooting incident, the administration has tried unsuccessfully to restore calm at the 86-year old institution.
There are fears that high political tension at Uganda’s premier institution of learning is likely to affect academic progress, and consequently reduce the university ranking. Students who spoke to this reporter said they have missed classes for two weeks because lecturers are fearing the politically charged atmosphere at the institution and have abandoned lecture halls.
Confusion ensued after the university cancelled the election results and announced that fresh polls would be held but later made a u-turn and declared third runner-up and NRM candidate, John Teira, as winner, forcing students to turn wild.
The students accused the university authorities of conspiring with the ruling National Reistance Movement party in disqualifying Democratic Party candidate Shaban Senkubuge whom they said at the time of his disqualification, was leading the poll count with a big margin .
Mr Senkubuge was disqualified by the students’ guild electoral commission on grounds of alleged gross misconduct and interfering with the work of the electoral commission, including purportedly grabbing and running away with polling materials, assaulting of polling officials and inciting violence.
The other contestants included Simon Peter Musangala, a third year law student; Denis Patto, second year social cciences; Denis Enap Adim of the Uganda Peoples Congress; Oteran Tayebwa for the Forum for Democratic Chaneg; and Grace Ruto.
To calm students, a tribunal headed by deputy chairperson of University Council, Christine Kiganda, was instituted by Council to look into complaints of contestants.
The contestants point to a partisan electoral commission which they say is stuffed with NRM supporters, and a partisan university management, as key catalysts for the current problems. The five-member commission chaired by Simon Mwesige was elected on February 18 by the Guild Representative Council which is the students’ legislature.
After the controversial announcement of Teira’s suspicious win, the students decided to take matters into their hands with about 500 of them pelting Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba, the acting vice chancellor, with stones as he emerged from a crisis meeting with the contestants.
The whole situation became even more complicated by the resignation of Mr Busingye Kabumba, the guild legal advisor from the tribunal this week citing unconstitutional procedures in his appointment.
Mr Busingye Kabumba, a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, who was named to the position by the Dean of Students, Mr John Ekudu, says the latter did it illegally. He argued that guild legal advisers have to be appointed by the sitting student guild government and not the dean of students.
Despite Kabumba’s resignation, the tribunal sat and ruled that fresh polls be organised for halls whose results had been cancelled. It also ruled that Mr Ssenkubuge be re-instated as a guild contestant.
Mr Banard Luyiga, the University LC3 councillor told Inside Politics that they have informed police that they will organise a peaceful demonstration next Thursday against the university administration for imposing an NRM mole as a guild president.
But the head of the university police, Mr Juliaus Tusingwire, warned students against getting involved in the demonstration, which he said, has not been cleared by the Inspector General of Police, Maj. Gen. Kale Kayihura, to take place.
“We have informed Makerere police to provide us with security on Thursday,” Mr Luyiga told said, adding, “We shall be demonstrating against the interference of the NRM-led administration in students’ affairs.”
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party is also threatening to sue Prof. Baryamureeba, accusing him of meddling in students’ politics.
DP legal adviser, Mukasa Mbidde said told Inside Politics that his party has lost faith in the tribunal and that it was imperative that they seek redress from courts of law.
“After the tribunal, we shall be going to court that is where we expect justice,” Mr Mbide said.
Independent body
Ms Rita Namisango, the university publicist denied DP’s accusation that Prof. Baryamureeba was meddling in student affairs.
“That is not true,” she said, “The students electoral affairs are handled by an independent body which is elected by students themselves.”
Watchers of student politics have meanwhile told this newspaper that the latest troubles on the hill also have something to do with the fact that certain senior university officials were hoping to place themselves in good stead with the national government by being seen to favour their candidate.
