Dismiss Nawangwe, Mao tells Museveni

DP president Norbert Mao

 By Shabibah Nakirigya

The Democratic Party President Mr Norbert Mao has asked President Museveni to dismiss the Vice Chancellor of Makerere University Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe with immediate effect because he has failed to manage the institution.

The most recent strikes at Makerere University started last week with female students rejecting the 15 per cent tuition increment policy. Students protested and several were arrested including the Guild president Julius Katerega, and later released on police bond. Police and military have been deployed at the university since then to control the situation.

Speaking to the media at their weekly press conference in Kampala on Tuesday, Mr Mao said that this is not the first time the students are striking over the same issue, and yet Prof. Nawangwe has failed to resolve the matter.

“It’s very hard to manage Makerere University if you’re  not determined and intelligent and I therefore urge the government to be very vigilant while assessing  people to manage big institutions like Makerere,” he said.

“In my view, the hope people had when Prof. Nawange was appointed as a Vice Chancellor has vanished and he should resign and we look for another vice chancellor and this should be done by students first,” he said.

Meanwhile, the DP National Mobiliser Joseph Mayanja aka Jose Chameleone has asked the Ministry of Education and Sports to intervene into the matter of Makerere university strikes because the situation is getting worse.

“It’s very absurd that up to now the ministry has not come up to resolve the matter. These issues should not be left to the university administration only,” he said.

Written by Carol Beyanga