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 “Cabinet met and the ministry’s
paper was discussed and agreed that the university be opened,” said Prof.
Gabriel Opio, the state minister for higher education said at the media centre
yesterday.
Kyambogo University has about 10,000 students both
sponsorships
Prof. Opio said since its closure many activities were taken
in line with the Kamuntu report, including the termination of the Vice
Chancellor, recruiting a deputy Vice Chancellor, searching for a new Chancellor,
suspending the University’s Bursar and Secretary by Inspector General of
Government and the validation exercise of all staff.
President Yoweri Museveni appointed Prof.
Ephraim Katuntu, the state minister in charge of industry, to lead a cabinet
sub-committee that investigated cause of unrest at Kyambogo University
in 2006.
Business at Kyambogo University
came to a standstill after the institution’s council on February 9 decided to
close the campus. It gave students two hours to vacate the premises. The
closure followed a prolonged academic staff strike over salaries. The strike
had lasted two weeks.
They accused the university
management of unfairly slashing their salaries basing on the new policy in
public universities. The striking lecturers were later joined by their
students. Kyambogo University Academic Staff Association (Kyuasa) wants the
salaries of its 331 members reinstated.
The University Council instituted an
ad-hoc committee to advise on salary related issues and on April 25, 2008,
council adopted the committee’s report and directed university management to
implement the salary structure in arrears with effect from January 2008.
Prof Opio allayed the fears of some
lecturers who fear that the validation exercise was targeting some members of
both teaching and non-teaching staff because of their involvement in the
strike.
“The staff who will not qualify to teach in Kyambogo University will be returned to the
Ministry of Education for redeployment and those due for retirement will be
retired,” Prof .Opio added.
A
new University Council constituted at Kyambogo University
elected Mr James Kalebo, a former principal of the Uganda Management Institute,
as acting University Council chairperson. Prof. Opio said the students would be
compensated for the time lost when the university was closed
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