By Eye Media | OYAM | July 7, 2026
Authorities in Oyam District have launched a crackdown on headteachers in Universal Primary Education (UPE) schools accused of sending pupils home over school fees, describing the practice as illegal and contrary to the government’s free education policy.
The operation follows numerous complaints from parents alleging that some UPE schools have been sending learners home, barring them from attending classes and denying them end-of-term examinations for failing to pay school dues.
The crackdown began on Monday after Oyam Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Sgt. Shilako James arrested Michael Okwir, the Deputy Headteacher of Agobadong Primary School in Iceme Sub-county, for allegedly sending more than 150 pupils home over unpaid school fees.
According to the RDC, the incident was discovered during a routine monitoring exercise.
“By 9:45 a.m., we found many pupils walking back home. When we asked them why, they told us they had been sent away to collect school fees. I immediately returned them to school and arrested the deputy headteacher responsible,” Sgt. Shilako said.
Investigations indicate that Agobadong Primary School has been charging each pupil Shs6,500 per term. Pupils who fail to pay the money are allegedly barred from attending lessons and sitting end-of-term examinations.
Parents have welcomed the district’s intervention, saying the school charges have become an unbearable burden, especially for families with many children.
Bosco Ogwal, a parent at Agobadong Primary School, said meeting the payment deadlines has been difficult.
“I have eight children in school—four in secondary school and four in primary school. It is not easy to raise all the money within the first month of the term as the school demands,” Ogwal said.
Despite the enforcement action, some school leaders argue that the fees are necessary to keep schools operational amid inadequate government funding.
Moses Mandela Ojede, a member of the School Management Committee at Odong Primary School in Loro Sub-county, warned that prohibiting schools from enforcing payment could affect infrastructure development.
“If we are not allowed to compel parents to pay these contributions, many will simply stop paying. Yet this money helps us construct staff houses, pay support staff and repair worn-out school facilities,” Ojede said.
The government introduced Universal Primary Education to provide free access to basic education for all children. While schools are permitted to receive voluntary contributions approved by School Management Committees, education authorities have consistently maintained that no child should be denied access to education or examinations because of unpaid school dues.
District authorities say the crackdown will continue across Oyam to ensure all UPE schools comply with government policy and that no learner is unlawfully sent away from school.
