By KT Reporter
The Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) has arrested several headteachers and school directors in Kagadi and Hoima districts for hiring secondary school students to sit Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) on behalf of registered candidates.
UNEB Executive Director Dan Odongo confirmed the arrests, saying the suspects were apprehended by the board’s security team. “Our security team has arrested headteachers and directors of some of these schools,” Odongo said. At Salama Education Centre Primary School in Kagadi, five impersonators were found, while at Kasasa Primary School in Hoima, 15 secondary students were caught attempting to sit the exams.
Odongo said UNEB has observed an increase in cases of impersonation and will remain alert as candidates prepare to start the national exams. Over the year, UNEB has been working to tighten security to prevent examination leakages and other forms of malpractice. However, impersonation remains a major vice, with some schools and candidates hiring others to write exams on their behalf.
Similar cases have been recorded in previous years at both primary and secondary levels. This week, an incident was registered in Mubende when a 36-year-old man, Leonard Elungat, was arrested for impersonating another candidate during the ongoing examinations. The UNEB Act criminalizes impersonation. Section 19 of the UNEB Act provides that anyone who, with intent to impersonate, presents or attempts to present themselves in place of an enrolled candidate commits an offence.
The law prescribes a fine not exceeding fifty thousand shillings, imprisonment for up to two years, or both. To ensure the integrity of the PLE, which carries the highest stakes in Uganda, the Board has deployed 59,890 field personnel to oversee the 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. According to the board, the deployed team includes 160 district monitors, 13,841 scouts, 12,260 chief invigilators, and 524 security officers.
On Friday, schools held briefings for candidates and moved learners from non-candidate classes to ensure the examinations could proceed without disruptions. In Moroto, primary school headteachers plan to allow candidates with outstanding fees to sit the PLE, ensuring their preparation is not disrupted. Attendance and engagement among candidates have improved, with all learners attending briefing sessions.
At Kasimeri Primary School, 167 candidates were registered, including 100 girls, supported by a favorable learning environment. Samuel Ewangu, the headteacher, said that fee payment arrangements would be discussed with parents after the exams. Ewangu added that despite teachers’ industrial action, candidates had revised extensively and were well-prepared. One candidate with a disability received extra exam time, and a previously pregnant girl who had dropped out was traced and included.
Daniel Engwau, the headteacher of Moroto Municipal Council Primary School, said that they registered 51 candidates, including three with disabilities. He noted that UNEB officials had promised to send special supervisors for the candidates with special needs. Engwau added that although they have many fee defaulters, they are allowing them to sit for the exams while engaging their parents on payment arrangements.
In Hoima City, 3,691 candidates have been prepared and registered to write their Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE). Of these, 1,942 are from government-aided primary schools while 1,748 are from private schools. They will write their exams in 35 UNEB centers situated within the city. According to Johnson Kusiima Baingana, the Hoima City Principal Education Officer, over 100 invigilators and chief invigilators have been trained to supervise the examinations.
He has warned directors of private schools against preventing candidates with outstanding fees from writing their exams. Schools are advised to allow candidates to sit for the exams and later confiscate their results if the fees are not cleared.
Baingana has cautioned UNEB managers, teachers, and candidates to desist from any forms of examination malpractice. A total of 817,885 candidates registered for this year’s examinations, up from 797,444 in 2024, marking a 2.5% increase. Registrations were made from 16,140 examination centers. Of the candidates, 389,529 (48%) are male and 428,356 (52%) are female.
Government-funded candidates under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) program total 522,039 (64%), while 295,846 (36%) are privately sponsored. Sixty-one registered candidates are inmates from Upper Prison School, Luzira, including 7 females and 54 males. A total of 3,644 candidates have special needs requiring additional support during the examination, with 1,879 (51.5%) male and 1,765 (48.5%) female.
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