Kotido SS parents concerned about mass expulsion of pregnant students

Kotido, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Parents of Kotido Secondary School are concerned about the mass expulsion of female students due to teenage pregnancies.

On Monday (7th July), the Head Teacher, Emmanuel Lokedi, suspended nine students indefinitely for being pregnant. It followed a compulsory pregnancy test sanctioned by the school administration.  School sources said a fetus was also dumped in a girls’ bathroom.

Eight girls in S.2 and one in S.6 were found pregnant.

Charles Ocaya, a parent at the school, expressed disappointment, pointing fingers at the school administration for failing to impart discipline among the students.

He said that the administration has continuously failed to address the issues of discipline, citing incidents of students escaping to the town to drink alcohol, especially during weekends.

But Patricia Apolot, a parent from the school neighbourhood in West Division, insists that parents are to blame for the indiscipline of their children.

Apolot said that most parents in Karamoja do not take the time to guide their children once they reach the secondary level of education. She urges that parents instead give much respect to the children in secondary school and never hold them accountable for their actions.

Teenage pregnancy and early marriage are among the leading causes of school dropouts in Kotido, according to the DEO Anjello Lowari, standing at over 60%.

Uganda Annual Health Sector Report 2023/2024, teenage pregnancy remains a leading killer of women and girls aged 15-19 years. It may need a community stand.

Specioza Kifunza Nawal, a social worker with Strong Minds, a CBO offering mental health therapy, urges the parents of the affected girls to accept them and support them to go back to school after delivery.

A section of the community said teenage pregnancy is spiralling due to the growth of small townships where entertainment spaces for young girls and boys have been boosted.

Last year, six girls were dismissed from school at Kotido SS due to pregnancy, said the head teacher, Emmanuel Lokedi. The school has an enrollment of about 2000 students.

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