Commissioners investigated for school of the deaf capitation grant fraud

The State House Anti-Corruption Unit has initiated a comprehensive investigation into reports of capitation grant fraud within educational institutions in Mbale District.

The catalyst for this inquiry stems from Mbale School for the Deaf, in Mbale District, which has recently been embroiled in allegations of corruption involving school administrators manipulating student enrollment figures to secure increased funding.

Mbale School for the Deaf, one of only two secondary schools for the deaf in Uganda has grappled with internal turmoil over the past year, with tensions among current and former students, staff, and parents centering on their dissatisfaction with the head teacher, Rev. Sister Rose Nelima.

Mariam Natasha, the spokesperson for the State House Anti- Corruption Unit, said that “We received information highlighting irregularities in student enrollment figures at this school and several others in Mbale District, prompting our interest in this matter. The unit is expecting to scale up the investigation to other areas across the country.”

Apparently as a way of extending its services to PWDs with hearing impairment, the government fully supported the establishment of two model secondary schools of the Deaf in Mbale and Wakiso District that are enabling Deaf children to access secondary education.

Due to this, there has been an increase in the number of deaf students joining university and other tertiary institutions through the affirmative action scheme for persons with disabilities.

Related to the above is the fact that over the years, Kyambogo University has been training sign language interpreters as one of its unique programs.

Natasha further highlighted that the Commissioner of Special Needs, Sarah Bugosi, and the Commissioner of Secondary Schools, Sam Kuloba, are persons of interest in the ongoing investigations.