KAMPALA – The Ministry of Education and Sports has asked Local Governments and Police to arrest all individuals found distributing the learner’s materials that were sent to districts across the country.
The directive was issued by Alex Kakooza, Ministry of Education’s Permanent Secretary in a circular sent out on Tuesday, May 12, describing the actions as very unfortunate for the unscrupulous people to reproduce continuity of learning materials prepared by MoES and selling them to parents.
He said that the actions are criminal because the materials are free and should remain so.
Kakooza defended his directive saying it was prompted after the Ministry got wind of information that some unscrupulous people have resorted to reprinting, photocopying the study materials and selling them to parents/ learner’s at exorbitant prices.
“This is unacceptable since these materials were produced and distributed to be accessed by learners free of charge. There should be no sale of these study materials. If Local Governments or NGOs wish to print and distribute learner’s materials, it should be done at their own expense and not of learner or parents,” read in part the circular.
It should be recalled that after the directive by President Yoweri Museveni to close Institutions of learning to contain the spread of Coronovirus, the Ministry of Education and Sports developed the Preparedness and Response Plan that focuses on continuity of learning, the learning agenda and schooling after lockdown.
The materials are being used to deliver lessons on TVs and radios across the country and print ones are used for self study, while the self-study materials were printed and handed over to the respective Resident District Commissioners (RDCs) and Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs) in presence of District Education Officers.
Government argued that the materials are intended to keep learner’s busy and engage their ability, skills and knowledge while at home. The print study materials were intended to help learner’s who can’t access TVs and radios.