The disagreement stems from a letter Jude Mbabaali wrote to the Minister of Education and Sports early this month, protesting the allocation of a 2.12 billion Shillings grant to Turbuk Senior Secondary School, a Muslim founded government-aided school located in Mukungwe Sub County.
Sheikh Swaibuh Ndugga, the Greater Masaka district Kadhi, addressing the press on underlying controversy with Masaka L.CV chairperson over Seed school's grant
A row has erupted between Masaka District Chairperson Jude Mbabaali and the Muslim community in the area over a multi-billion World Bank-funded seed school for the district.
The disagreement stems from a letter Jude Mbabaali wrote to the Minister of Education and Sports early this month, protesting the allocation of a 2.12 billion Shillings grant to Turbuk Senior Secondary School, a Muslim founded government-aided school located in Mukungwe Sub County.
Mbabaali says that in 2018, the government earmarked the said funds, part of a donation from the World Bank to construct a seed secondary school in a sub-county with none. Subsequently, the district executive committee and council resolved to have the school constructed in Bukakata Sub County.
He, however, argues that although the district had submitted all the required paperwork including a title of six acres of land donated by the Masaka Catholic Diocese, some staffs at the Ministry of Education connived and swapped the project to benefit an existent private school in Mukungwe Sub County.
He accused the Ministry of Education of conniving with directors of Tarbuk Secondary located in Mukungwe Sub County, to fraudulently register the school in what he describes as a scheme to swindle part of the project funds and asked the Inspector General of Government to institute an investigation into the said fraud.
But the letter stirred resentment from the Local Muslim Community led by Sheikh Swaibuh Ndugga, the Greater Masaka Regional Khadi, accusing Mbabaali of conspiring to block their funding.
Sheikh Ndugga says that the school administration processed the required paperwork and submitted it to the Ministry of Education to prove their eligibility to benefit from the project as the Muslim community in the area. He says that they were surprised to face resistance from the district chairman.
//Cue in; "kulwange nkiraba…
Cue out…..bweyasalwawo."//
The Secretary General of the Greater Masaka Muslim Council Sheikh Ahmed Kayemba has equally accused Mbabali of sidelining the interests of the Muslim Community. Kayemba cautioned that they may be prompted to encourage their followers in a protest against Mbabaali, should he insist on blocking the funding.
//Cue in; "abakulembeze baffe…..
Cue out: ……nkyogera ssimutya."//
But Jude Mbabaali denied harboring biases against the Muslim community and argued that he is striving to follow a government policy of equitable distribution of public resources. Mbabaali also accuses the management of Turbuk Secondary School of fraudulently conniving with selfish staff at the Ministry Of Education to divert the grant.
He adds that the move disenfranchises communities of Bukakata Sub County which are not served with any public secondary school.
