Judge not according to appearance
, but judge righteous judgment (John
7:34)
But he that is
spiritual judges all things (1 Corinthians 2:15)
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| Prof.Mukiibi with BIG rosary and idol of Mary in his office |
Women MPs Want Late Prof. Lawrence Mukiibi Investigated
MPs demand probe into Mukiibi’s sexual misconduct
By Paul Kiwuuwa
Added 15th June 2017 03:16 PM
We demand that government investigates the
allegations of sexual abuse of young women and girls by the late school
principal of St Lawrence schools
By
Paul Kiwuuwa
A
group of women MPs have demanded for an investigation into the alleged sexual
misconduct of the fallen educationist, Prof Lawrence Mukiibi.
Addressing
a news conference on Thursday at Parliament, Uganda Women's Parliamentary
Association (UWOPA), chairperson, Monica Amoding said a committee should be
instituted to look into the welfare of the children left behind by the late.
“We
demand that government investigates the allegations of sexual abuse of young
women and girls by the late school principal of St Lawrence schools,” Amonding
who was flanked by officials from Center for Domestic Violence Prevention
(CEDOVIP) said.
The
proprietor of St. Lawrence schools and university died two weeks ago aged 69.
However,
moments after his burial, news of his alleged sexual perversions started
trickling in after it emerged that he had sired more than 70 children with
multiple women.
There
have been allegations on social media that among the dozens of those children
were mothered by his students.
Last
week, UNATU general secretary, James Tweheyo, said Mukiibi’s actions are a
disgrace to the sector and the late educationist’s actions should be condemned
in the strongest terms.
“It
is professionally wrong for a teacher to have sexual relations or at worst sire
children with his students, because apart from being unethical, the public,
parents and fellow teachers lose trust in such a teacher," said Tweheyo.
Written by DR NANSOZI K. MUWANGA
Prof Mukiibi was a psychopath, predator
June 13,
2017
“Psychopaths
are social predators, and like all predators, they look for feeding
grounds. Wherever you get power, prestige and money, you will find
them,” Robert D. Hare said.
The sudden and untimely death of St
Lawrence Schools proprietor Lawrence Mukiibi came as a shock, especially
for those who had come to believe that he was a transformative force, a
beacon of light in an otherwise gloomy education landscape important to
the broader transformation of Uganda’s education.
After the dignified – almost stately
funeral and accolades usually only reserved for political dignitaries -
little did the public know that no sooner than he – Mukiibi – had been
laid to rest there would be a different kind of outpouring, an
avalanche, actually a tsunami of disgust and disbelief!
Unmasked as a rampant pedophile and child abuser, his demise signals the beginning of real questions about the accountability structures of our education system especially in the pursuit of quality at all costs.
Unmasked as a rampant pedophile and child abuser, his demise signals the beginning of real questions about the accountability structures of our education system especially in the pursuit of quality at all costs.
More so in our so-called ‘elite’,
‘first-world’ schools where parents pay through their noses to get the
grades and supposedly the grooming of their young into confident young
adults and responsible citizens.
The astronomical fees paid by parents
were uncontested at St Lawrence going into an account controlled by one
person – Mr Mukiibi himself. And apparently grooming too took place but
not the kind that parents thought they were paying for. It seems this
too was done and principally controlled by one person – Mr Mukiibi.
Simply put, it was done for the
gratification of one person who used parents’ trust and the authority
entrusted in him as well as the ‘safe’ school environment to conduct his
rampage on the young and innocent unabated - for years judging by the
children and young ‘widows’ left behind.
To my mind, this raises so many
questions that it is hard to know where to start. But for starters; who
knew and why did they not raise the alarm?
Were parents aware of the sleazy character running these schools and purporting to look after and keep their boys and girls safe? Were the authorities aware, and at what level?
Were parents aware of the sleazy character running these schools and purporting to look after and keep their boys and girls safe? Were the authorities aware, and at what level?
Were any complaints ever raised and by
whom? Did they form part of any report submitted to the ministry of
Education and Sports, the district education officer (DEO), the district
inspector of schools (DIS) or even the Private Schools’ Network?
How can it be that the unsavoury actions
of one man in a position of authority, trusted by parents resulting in
the ‘production’ of 50+ children could have gone unnoticed, unreported,
and unabated for so long? What does this say about our system of
education and structures of accountability – vertically and
horizontally?
What does this say about the pervasive
culture of impunity? We can’t even begin to speculate about the
trickledown effect of this level of moral bankruptcy, sleaziness and
predatory destructiveness on the St Lawrence schools, its school
culture, head teachers, teachers and students and support staff.
As the ministry with the over- all
responsibility for education – planning, oversight and budgeting - can
you hear and feel the shock, the horror and disgust of your principal
clients – parents – and society at large on this issue?
Can you please do something that shows
that you too are as shocked and in need of answers like the rest of us
out here? Will the ministry and other responsible bodies undertake an
audit of what happened at the St Lawrence schools, the human costs and
consequences?
What does this say about the lack of
oversight, and accountability in our schooling system and what needs to
happen to plug the gaps?
We rage about girls’ lack of school
supplies, sanitary pads, books, school meals and how these and other
factors undermine the quality of our education.
We are up in arms and practically
speechless with anger when we discuss the culture of sex for marks in
universities and the uneven power relations created therein that leave
young adults 19+ years old powerless at the hands of predacious
lecturers.
But how can we sit still on this one
when the children we are talking about are possibly below 18 years, away
from home for the first time and vulnerable?
Can we really talk of a quality education at any level when predators in the form of school directors, head teachers and teachers are preying on the innocent and robbing them of their future?
Can we really talk of a quality education at any level when predators in the form of school directors, head teachers and teachers are preying on the innocent and robbing them of their future?
Can these be entrusted to put quality
before self-gratification, money and greed especially when their
behaviour undermines the very essence of quality schooling at every
level?
It seems to me that with these recent
revelations, we might very well have to revisit that old-age question of
why girls are not in school and whether it is not just the lack of
sanitary pads that is keeping hundreds of girls from school.
Let’s take this monster – child abuse in
schools, particularly of vulnerable and innocent girls – out of the
closet rather than shroud it in secrecy that allows the likes of Mukiibi
to father children from his ‘farm of girls’ in plain sight!
Let those responsible including the
school board of directors, the MoES, parents and CSOs look at this for
what it is...a tragedy and part of a more wide- spread and growing
problem related to our pervasive culture of impunity that is tempered by
power, money and greed.
It has to be addressed; dealt with now,
today and not in the next financial year. The trust of the innocent is
the liar’s most useful tool.
The author is head of political science department at Makerere University.
The author is head of political science department at Makerere University.
