PANIC IN ALEBTONG: Whistle Blowers petition Minister Balam over massive school enrolment fraud, cattle compensation scam.
By Our Reporters
ALEBTONG, UGANDA: A section of parents and concerned citizens in Alebtong District have launched a petition to the Minister for Local Government, Hon Balam Barugahara, accusing some headteachers and some district officials of orchestrating a syndicate to inflate pupil numbers and defraud government funds.
The petitioners, mostly parents of several primary school pupils, claim that on 12th and 13th August 2026, headteachers recalled pupils who had been sent home over fees, counted them in government-aided schools, and then chased them away immediately after.
“Inflated numbers to steal capital grants”
According to the petition, at least 30 out of the 76 primary schools in Alebtong are allegedly suspected to have deliberately exaggerated enrolment figures during the headcount exercise to benefit from the capitation grant.
“We want Minister Balam to compare the counting of pupils conducted on 12th and 13th August in all the 76 primary schools in Alebtong with term one enrolment records,” one of the lead petitioners said.
“Ask the pupils of some schools if they were not taken forcefjlly from their orizinal schools to other schools just to be counted and thwy went back to their schools footing.”
Another parent alleged that some headteachers inflated numbers specifically to increase capitation grants for personal benefit, causing financial loss to government hence they muat be investigated by Hon Minister Balam and Namaere Justine irrespective of the God fathers the accused persons have.
“Why should they not be arrested for hiking the number of pupils simply because they want capitation grants to increase for their own benefit?” the parent asked.
One petitioner, who requested to talk on condition of anonymity but offered to testify, said: “On 12th and 13th, all pupils sent home because of fees, though in government-aided schools, were recalled, counted and after being counted they were chased and told not to go back.”
One of tge parents testified that he has an examplw on onw of the schools in Lango where fees have been hiked in some government aided schools contrary to UPE guidelines
The petition further accuses a headteacher in one of the schools in Lango sub-region of hiking P7 fees from Shs 250,000 to Shs 350,000, and demanding Shs 100,000 per term for “school beds from each P7 pupils.” Parents are also charged Shs 10,000 termly for latrine construction in one of the government-aided school.
Minister Balam Urged to Probe Alebtong “Pupil Counting Fraud” and Cattle Compensation Scam.
Part of the two-page petition also implicates some 6 top district officials in Alebtong in the cattle restocking compensation program.
The petitioners alleged that beneficiaries inserted were not from Alebtong, but were sneaked in under deals to “share the loot”among high-ranking officials of tge diatrict. They furtger ask Balam to physically demands for livestock compensation physically if alk of them are real residents of Sub-counties namely; Akura, Abia, Omoro and Angeta.
Okuja Mohammed of Abia Sub-county specifically named some district officials for inserting their friends and relatives from neighboring districts.
“We shall camp in Alebtong for two days ahead of Balam’s Visit and exposed all the alleged rots in Alebtong District.” Said Mohamed.
Frustrated, the petitioners have threatened to board a bus and meet Hon Minister Balam Ateenyi wherever he is, and to join his convoy so that he camps in Alebtong District for two days to demand action on the suapected corrupt individuals.
A senior civil servant who also signed the petition said he is ready to testify before the hon minister despite fears of losing his job because he has document and list of restocking beneficiaries who were fraudulently sellected for the benefit of some top salaries earners in Alebtong..He threatened to name them one-by-one before minister Balam.
“I want to be on record before Minister Balam to explain why Alebtong is among the top five most corrupt districts in Uganda,” he said. However Capitation grants are government funds sent to schools based on pupil enrollment to cater for instructional materials, co-curricular activities, and school management.
Part II of the petition detailing the “Operation Expose the Corrupt” is expected soon………..
Efforts to reach Hon Minister Balam Barugahara to comment on the matter is underway as his phone went unanswered by the time of compiling this report but our reporter shall get back to him.
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