Busoga University
will reopen in August. This was revealed by the Ministry of Education’s
assistant commissioner in charge of university education and training, John
Ochira.
In December 2016, the
National Council for Higher Education-NCHE revoked the provisional license of
Busoga University, which has been in operation since 1998 on several
grounds. The university was operating
under the control of Busoga Diocese at the time of closure.
NCHE accused the
University of awarding fake degrees, which prompted it to cancel more than
1,000 degrees awarded to students, recruiting unqualified academic staff and
accumulating debts among others contrary to the Universities and Other Tertiary
Intuitions Act.
At the time of the
closure, the university was highly indebted and lacked funds to sustain the
daily operational costs of the institution.
However, in 2018,
President Yoweri Museveni pledged that the government would take over the
university, a process that started.
Last year the
university’s re-operationalization taskforce and the Ministry of Education
signed a Memorandum of understanding, clearing them to expedite the re-opening.
Speaking to
stakeholders during the ongoing university’s verification exercise at the main
campus in Iganga district on Tuesday, Ochira said that the Church of Uganda
already handed over 215 acres of land to the Ministry of Education for
development.
He says that the
verification exercise will involve an assessment of the existing physical
infrastructure and other liabilities, before handing over the site to UPDF’s
engineering for the necessary facelifts required to make the buildings viable
for habitation.
Ochira also notes
that the government has since cleared half of the 15.5 Billion Shillings, which
the then privately owned Busoga University owed to different entities, a move
he says will enable the university to smoothly operate without any hindrances.
Ochira adds that they
are in the process of signing an MOU with the UPDF’s engineering brigade, which
will kick off operations in the next two weeks.
The chairperson of
Busoga University’s taskforce, John Tabuti says that they have expedited the
university’s operational demands ranging from laying out courses to be
undertaken by the learners, policies governing the institution and earmarking
out some buildings to rollout lectures.
Tabuti says that they
have also embarked on the process of recruiting substantive lecturers and other
support staff to ensure the maximum operability of the university.
Kigulu South MP,
Milton Muwuma says that restoration of Busoga University will not only boost
the education services but also revitalize the economic triumph of the area.
Muwuma has advised
residents in the neighbouring communities to construct hostels and set up
restaurants, saloons and other services to boost their incomes.
By Elite Daily News
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