The Gulu LCV Chairman, Mr Martin Ojara Mapenduzi said he has realized that some politicians who are against him are frustrating his struggles to improve the standard of education so that the primary seven candidates passing in division one in the forth coming PLE Exams should not exceed hundreds as he promised.

He added that, leaders are telling parents never to send their children early to school because there are no teachers and giving many false reasons yet ninety percent of all the teachers in Gulu reported on the first day of the beginning of third term.

Mapenduzi said they are fighting him just because he vowed to resign if primary seven candidates failed to get one hundred first graders in the forth coming PLE exam 2012.

He named them as fake leaders who joined politics for self-interests, and urged them to work hard instead of fighting him.

Mapenduzi said that he still stands by his word to resign after the Primary Leaving Exam Mapenduzi however said he will not resign by force or to suit some funny politician’s interests.

Mapenduzi revealed that police officers are deployed to arrest the leaders and parents who are frustrating his effort by not sending their children to school instead sending them to work in the garden.

He added that he is annoyed with leaders who send their children to study in Kampala instead of improving the level of education at home.

He called on electorate never to vote for such leaders again in the next general election, and promised to see that all teachers have their children studying in the same school they are teaching in, in order to make them work hard.

In his response, secretary health and education Gulu district local council Mr Okwonga John said that this is just very a small issue that has nothing to do with the results; he further said there is no problem with the leaders taking their children to study in Kampala if they can afford the school fees.

According to Mr. Okwonga the standard of education can only be improved by doing enough inspection and proper supervision by the District Education Officials of which he said the council had agreed that improving school inspection must be followed up.

Martin Ojara Mapinduzi said there is a ready set education Ordinance by Gulu District Local Government which was passed in 2010. It has largely been silent and left to lie idle in the book shelves.

Mapenduzi said they will start implementing the ordinance of Education and Sports after realizing that there is now a political war on him.

According to the Gulu district local government education Ordinance among the Education and Sports ordinance set to be implemented beginning this academic term are, Parents or teachers who will fail to meet the education needs of children will be subjected to fines and jail terms of six months, a bar owner who allows a child into the premises will be fined 40,000 shillings and on second offence be fined a similar amount in addition to forfeiting the business license.

The Ordinance also provides for a fine of 40,000 shillings to anyone who obstructs or stops an inspector of schools from carrying out inspection in a school.

It adds that parents should register and ensure all their children of school going age are in school.

It further says that parents should provide clothing, food, transport, shelter, guidance, psychosocial welfare for their children in addition to participating in community support to schools, the head teachers are not supposed to demand for payment of tuition fees at any government and grant aided primary schools.

When contacted on phone the District Education Officer could not mention anything in the ordinance however he said they are working hard so that we don’t lose Mapenduzi as a leader after the results.

Geoffrey Otim the chairman L.C3 Pece division said he strongly supports this ordinance and is ready to implement it.
  
Mapenduzi, said he has directed that all the local council leaders and sub county chiefs should ensure that all the provisions of the ordinance are upheld. Ojara threatened to arrest any parent or civil servant who interferes with the implementation of the law.
  
All this comes after the second term mock results for primary seven candidates in Gulu district showed worst performance whereby in 117 primary schools only 19 got division one and this placed the district among the worst performers.