Police in Kabale District have arrested Drake Kishaijja, the Head Teacher of Rwababa Primary School, for allegedly preventing a pupil from sitting the Mathematics paper during the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) over unpaid Shs 70,000 coaching fees.
Kishaijja reportedly blocked pupil Ezekiel Ahimbisibwe (Index No. 002/002472) from taking his final national examinations, claiming the student had not cleared the fees during the recent teachers’ industrial action.
The incident was reported to Kabale Police Station by the pupil’s relative, Gerald Natuhumuza Esau, who accused the headteacher of denying the student access to the exam despite being eligible to sit it.
According to Kigezi Regional Police Spokesman ASP Elly Maate, Ezekiel was only allowed into the examination room by officers when the exam was nearly over.
Primary Seven pupils across Uganda kicked off the PLE 2025 examinations on Monday, with UNEB confirming 817,885 candidates (52% girls and 48% boys), a 2.5% increase from last year. Of these, 64% are from Universal Primary Education (UPE) schools and 36% from private schools, while 61 inmates from Upper Prison School Luzira are also participating.
Learners began with Mathematics in the morning and continued with Social Studies and Religious Education in the afternoon. The exams are taking place at 16,140 centres nationwide. According to Jennifer Kalule-Musamba, the first day of examinations was largely successful across the country, with no major administrative difficulties reported.
