Parliament demands a halt to teacher recruitment for Seed Schools

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A standoff is brewing between Parliament and the Ministry of Education over the recruitment of teachers for Seed Secondary Schools, as MPs demand a halt to the process amid allegations of corruption and favouritism.

The ongoing recruitment, which is being led by the Education Service Commission, has sparked controversy just as parliamentary committees launch investigations into the fairness and transparency of the process.

In November, Speaker Anita Among instructed the Joint Committee on Education, along with the Committee on Public Service and Local Government, to investigate claims of nepotism, corruption, and the hiring of unqualified teachers in World Bank-funded seed schools. As part of this, she advised the Ministry to pause the recruitment until the inquiry was concluded.

However, despite the house’s decision, the Education Service Commission went ahead with advertising over 2,800 teaching vacancies across 115 seed schools in December 2024, at a time when Parliament was in recess.

Today, as parliament resumed, MPs questioned why the Ministry continued the process in defiance of the parliamentary decision.

Addressing the matter, Henry Maurice Kibalya, MP for Bugabula County South, pointed out the apparent disregard for Parliament’s decision to pause the recruitment. “The recruitment process should not have proceeded while the committee was still investigating the matter. We need guidance on how to handle this,” Kibalya said during the session.

In response, Minister of State for Education Dr John Chrysostom Muyingo acknowledged that the Ministry had advertised the vacancies and that applications were already pouring in. He explained that, despite the ongoing investigation, the Ministry could not afford to delay the recruitment process as schools are due to open soon.

“The term start date is fast approaching, and teachers are needed to prepare and organize the schools,” Muyingo stated.

Speaker Anita Among reminded the Minister that a petition had been submitted to Parliament, questioning the legitimacy of the recruitment process, and emphasized that the Ministry appeared to be disregarding Parliament’s decision.

Muyingo, however, insisted that the Ministry did not intend to disrespect Parliament, but argued that the recruitment had to continue due to the urgency of filling teaching positions ahead of the new term.

Bugiri Municipality MPAsuman Basalirwa said that continuing the recruitment process while Parliament is investigating the matter could render the parliamentary process meaningless. He advised that the recruitment be halted, as previously directed until the parliamentary inquiry is concluded, after which the Ministry can provide guidance on how to proceed.

The petition that prompted parliamentary intervention was submitted by headteachers, teachers, and Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs), who expressed concerns about the exclusion of teachers who had served in the schools as volunteers or underpaid staff. Reports indicate that these exclusions may be driven by regional biases rather than merit.

Godfrey Onzima, the Aringa North MP, also highlighted the need to reconsider the centralized teacher recruitment process. He argued that many teachers are placed in rural and upcountry schools only to abandon their posts, leaving schools understaffed. He cited the example of Lomogi Seed Secondary School in his constituency, which currently has only five teachers.

He further noted that in many instances, teachers who were already working in schools before the government takeover, especially in older institutions not newly built by the government, are denied the opportunity to continue, while newly deployed teachers often leave.

The Ministry of Education has admitted that discrepancies were found in the recruitment lists submitted to the Education Service Commission. On November 28, 2024, Peter Ogwang, another minister of state in the education ministry, acknowledged in Parliament that conflicting submissions from various stakeholders had complicated the verification of the lists.

While Minister Muyingo acknowledged irregularities in the process, he also assured Parliament that the Ministry is trying to ensure fairness, especially after past reports of financial corruption in the recruitment process.

“We are committed to fairness in recruitment, but we must also be realistic. If we delay the process, it will harm the schools and students,” he said.

With the new school term set to begin on February 3, teachers are expected to report to their stations at least two weeks before to prepare for the upcoming academic year. Given this tight timeline, the Education Ministry remains adamant that the recruitment process must continue despite the ongoing parliamentary inquiry.

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