Barely two weeks before the second term opens, parents of Budo Junior School whose children perished in a fire last month, are still agonizingly searching for justice.

Take Moreen Muganire, for instance. The 56-year old grand-mother lost a grand-daughter, Samantha Ntudhu, in the April 14 inferno that killed 19 other pupils. A month later, Muganire seems to be angrier about the way authorities have handled the tragedy than her loss itself.

In Muganire’s words, Ntudhu, 9, was a lively and hard working child whom she had raised since birth – and the only child of Muganire’s only daughter, Justine. As she recalls the bond she had with the girl, she feels let down by everyone – the school authorities, the Ministry of Education, and the government.

“How come,” she asks, “no one from the school, ministry or government, has ever reached out to us to formally offer a message of condolence?”
At least, she says, the Mengo government did something; a week after the fire, a lady called Muganire on her mobile phone and offered the Kabaka’s condolences.
The central government offered each bereaved family Shs 500,000, but Muganire insists her family did not touch that money – their child was worth a lot more than a bundle of cold bank notes.

“If someone steps on your toe and turns to you and says ‘sorry’, you move on; but if he just marches away, you start suspecting that may be he meant it,” the grandmother says.

Like Muganire, Amina Nanyitti who lost a daughter, Juliet Lunkuse, 10, in the fire is not impressed by government’s reaction to the tragedy so far.
“Government only cares about re-building the school. For us [parents], we have been ignored,” says Nanyitti, a widow, who operates a drugs shop at Nyanama, a Kampala suburb.

Government, Budo quiet

On its part, government remains quiet and seems to have dropped the ‘tough tone’ it adopted in the wake of the fire.

For good measure, it is spearheading the prosecution of the matron of Nassolo dormitory, Damalie Basirika and four guards, who three weeks ago were charged with negligence of duty resulting in death and destruction of property at the school.

Last week, the Buganda Road Court rejected their bail application for the second time over fears that they could interfere with the evidence against them.
Parliament also designated one of the victims, Yvonne Namaganda, a heroine for ‘sacrificing’ her life, to rescue others.

Yet while the above developments are welcome, some parents say they do not address the pertinent issues about the tragedy.

“We want the matter of future child safety at Budo and other schools to be looked into seriously by government,” argues Nanyitti. “Not just arresting people.”

Some of the promises made by government and the school remain unfulfilled. For instance, the suggestion of counseling the bereaved parents and the survivors has not been realised. Government is also quiet about the erection of a monument in honour of the dead.

As for the school, it promised three weeks ago that it would give each affected family Shs 600,000––money which was to be got from the school’s insurer, A.I.G. So far not even a penny has come through.

In an interview this week, Ddungu said the money “is there” and will be paid out soon.
He advised: “The parents should be patient. We are doing all we can to solve their problems.”

Asked why the school had up to now failed to convene a meeting with the affected parents as earlier promised, Ddungu lost his cool.
“Why do you put pressure on me?” he asked one of our reporters before saying he was in an urgent meeting and did not want to be disturbed.
Unresolved questions

However, it is the unresolved questions about the tragedy that still puzzle the parents–– the most important of all being the cause of the fire.
Was it an accident or an action of arson? Many ask.

Already, an investigation by the police has ruled out an electrical short circuit as well as use of petrol, according to a seven-page report seen by The Weekly Observer.

The report points at arson as the remaining possibility without identifying who could have set off the fire.
Investigators will now try to identify the person and establish whether he was from the school or from outside.
Yet the probability of arson feeds into another query, relating to the identity of the two bodies that were reportedly found in the burnt-down dormitory.
Surprisingly, the report remains silent over these two bodies.
Then there are some parents who believe that while investigations so far have failed to establish a link between the fire and the squabbles that emerged during the former headmaster, William Kayongo’s term, police must critically examine the issue.

Kayongo, who served at the school for 13 years, left amid controversy early this year. There were allegations that he had failed to pay teachers and that he had financially run down the school. His leaving, however, divided some parents and teachers alike––with some opposing it and others supporting it.

Muganire says her late granddaughter, Samantha, told her that during the final assembly that Kayongo addressed as headmaster, he shed tears before the pupils.
This could suggest, according to Muganire, that he was ‘pushed out’.

If this were the case, does it mean he or anybody felt Kayongo was treated unfairly? And how was this apparent grievance resolved?

Court action

For what they perceive as failure by government and the school to adequately address the above queries, some parents are now preparing to seek court redress.

The Weekly Observer has learnt that last Saturday 10 of them met at Bulange, Mengo, for two hours and agreed to sue government and the school on charges of negligence.
“Government is liable because it is its duty to inspect schools. The school management committee also shares the blame for having failed to protect our children as they promised when we took them there,” said a source who attended the meeting.

At the meeting, one parent suggested that they be represented by city lawyer also Kampala Central MP, Erias Lukwago––but others disagreed, arguing using Lukwago, an opposition leader, would make it appear like they are fighting a political battle.

Lukwago, the Attorney General in the Shadow Cabinet, has had his fair share of run-ins with government over the years.

The failure to get a lawyer has forced them to convene another meeting, this Saturday, when they hope everything regarding the suit will be finalized.

As to whether Budo Junior will re-open for the second term on May 26 like other schools, Ddungu said ‘yes’.
But it is an answer that did not please Muganire. “How can anyone think of re-opening Budo Junior School before explaining to the bereaved families what killed their children?” she asked.

It is a legitimate question which is yet to be answered.

ekiggundu@ugandaobserver.com
rimkav@ugandaobserver.com