Makerere University Council, the administrative arm of the university, has bitterly agreed to make changes in the implementation of the 15 percent cumulative tuition policy in a bid to resolve a students’ demonstration that lasted for a week, forcing some lecturers to abandon teaching.
In an emergency meeting held with student leaders on Tuesday, the university council resolved to scrap the 15 percent increment from functional fees for the next three years.
“The 15 percent adjustment in fees shall not apply to functional fees for the remaining period of implementation of fees structure adopted in July 2018. Functional fees shall be capped at the rate applied on the admission cohort for 2019/2020 academic year for the next three years,” reads part of the statement signed by the council chairperson Ms Lorna Magara and the council secretary Mr Yufuf Kiranda.
However, the university council maintained that the 15 percent fees adjustment shall continue to be applied on tuition fees for the remaining period of three years.
Justifying the fees adjustments, the university council noted that it was conscious of the financial requirements to run the university alongside the economic circumstances in the country.
Further, the council said Makerere had not increased fees for 13 years before the current fees structure was passed.
Yesterday President Yoweri Museveni ordered the university administrators hold meetings with students’ leaders to solve the standoff. He also ordered the removal of the military from the university.
Meanwhile the council also ordered for investigations into the alleged involvement of two top university officials; Gordon Murangira, the Personal Assistant to the Vice-Chancellor and Prof. Eria Hisali, the Principal of College of Business and Management Sciences, in sanctioning military raids and brutalization of students at the institution and some are nursing injuries.
“That the allegations of threatening and battering students are taken seriously and need to be investigated. The chairperson of the council needs to communicate the matters of alleged threatening and battering of students to the vice-chancellor,” the council’s statement reads further.
A four-member select committee of council was formed to investigate the two officials and allegations of threatening and battering students.
