As I am driven through the gate of Buganda Road Primary School (BRPS), I am met with a stench of fermenting beans emanating from the nearby school canteen, which has changed little from the last time I used it in 1986. My mind raced to the once famous bean pies that my children have failed to comprehend each time I explain the concept.
The school is largely familiar and apart from some new structures that were erected reducing on the playing space, not much has changed.
This visit was a result of a meeting I had just had with Odaga Charles, Jackie Asiimwe, Annie Mungoma and Amos Kasule all OBs and OGs of this great school originally known as Norman Godinho Primary School. The previous day, Jackie has met the Head Teacher and identified some of the needs the school has. Having listed them, we decided to prioritise the issue of hygiene thereby leading to this fact finding mission to assess the extent to which it is a problem.
A walk through the compound made me feel 30 years younger and hearing the vibes from my colleagues I could feel some sense of joy but also sadness. In life it is a pity when you regress while growing up. We are set up to progress by default. Seeing BRPS in such a sorry state with all the buildings appearing derelict, paint peeling off, dirt as a trademark almost made me tear. This is a school that has turned 61 years for Christ’s sake.
The teaching staff seem to be victims of a public education system that seems to contradict the Prosperity message being preached around by the powers that be. It is a pity that Jennifer Musisi’s KCCA wants to tax the revenue generated in such a dilapidated excuse of a school without even offering them their required allocation of funds to operate.
With the school administration in tow, we began an inspection of the Toilet facilities after being briefed that for a population of 2800 pupils, there were 75 stances/toilets of which 47 are operational. This gives a ratio of 60 pupils per toilet.
First to hit me as we approached the girls’ toilet was a pungent smell typical of the police cells that detain suspects. This time though I was sure it was caused by urine and fermenting feacal matter as opposed to the body odor of petty criminals in police cells.
These toilets are so deprived that they don’t have any flushing water. Kids have to fetch water in customized 5 litre jerry cans for use after doing their business. I saw this young probably 7 year old girl struggling with one of the cut jerry cans to fetch water from a plastic drum taller than her.
How hygienic such a process is, I leave to your own imagination otherwise Urinary Tract Infections in my view must be one of the major diseases afflicting these pupils especially the girls.
A visit to the boys toilets revealed an even worse scenario. The stench welcoming us was acidic in nature and I could hardly stand it for more than the 60 seconds that i spent in there. How these pupils manage remains a mystery to me.
A chat with the school plumber reveals the major problem being the small pipes that take sewage from the toilets. They get blocked and because of the high demand (too many pupils), this means that they can’t process as fast as desired. Above all considering that most of the students are from homes that hardly have flushing toilets, this introduces another dimension of poor handling.
On a positive note though, the staff at the school seems to have a lot of hope in the future and seem to welcome any initiative aimed at reigniting the flame that BRPS once was. There is a pumped up Music teacher who has even composed a school anthem and had it professionally recorded in a studio, the Bursar who was there during our days is still around, the play ground is still safe thanks to KCCA’s efforts after the previous mayor had made an attempt to sell it off. The teachers’ hostel is still in place though dilapidated and now there is a fully-fledged nursery school too.
With such modern structures enveloping the school’s surroundings, its only prudent that BRPS moves with the times and embraces modern trends too.
As an Old Boy or Old Girl, do you feel comfortable leading your life when you know the sad state of affairs at your Alma Mater? Individually, the task is humongous, however, collectively, we can do something to help these young leaders of tomorrow shape their future free of inhibitors like disease. This is a call for you to join the effort to save Buganda Road Primary School. Together lets improve the hygiene levels of the school. Use the hash tag #SaveBRPS on twitter or join the Norman Godino Alumni group on Facebook for the collective action being planned.
“To Fly on Your Own”
The Wire Perspective 
Pingback: The School that Once Was – Buganda Road Primary School – Patrick Kyanda
Devastating a situation this is!To me ,Buganda road still shines.Am still proud of my school and proud that my daughter will at least have a year in the lovely school to be nurtured by some of my teachers who are still at the school.Lets go guys……we need to save our school.Am in……………….
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I think we can put a hash tag to save Buganda road kos toilets n paintings r so awful pliz those willing to put a hand to this cause we can form a group most of the guys we mighty be outta Uganda bt watsap groups can be formed to see way forward n contribute long live Bugy Rd “To fly on ur own ” Am bahia
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Check this out http://brpsalumni.org/
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i appreciate the role played by the current headteacher on uplifting the standards of the school thanks David
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Its really very sad to see my former school like this. We real need to do something.
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Sigh ! I’m pained at what I see ….this was /is a great institution…my first school way back in the 50’s ..! Yes , and in no particular order , it had great open outdoors / 2 iron chain swings by the corner , well kept classrooms and toilets , delicious , steaming Mogo in paper sheets for break time along with a choice of wholemeal bread with strawberry jam , and hot steaming mug of milk , later changed to cool tetrapak’s of the same …all in the region of 10 cents for Mogo….and I think the milk was subsidised …Plenty of space for development and a formidable Headmistress Miss Castellino , who put the fear of God in the most boisterous troublemaker boys…I left for a boarding school in Goa along with my brother , but on holidays was taken round by our parents to appreciate all the pride of Uganda , our birthplace …I remember the grounds of Makerere University too …impressive and solid…and the botanical gardens of Entebbe , and Jinja , all those picnics …
All is not lost , Kampala deserves better …I always tell my family that someday I must take them all there , to appreciate and give back..
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OMG! Very insightful thought. We should form an Alumni association and partner with the School PTA to say, start a savings scheme, or solicit for funds from development partners, the government or the alumni living in the diaspora, so as to salvage our ‘dying’ school. #ToFlyOnYourOwn. #SaveBRPS
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Charles Odaga is spearheading the setup of an OBs/OGs forum. Look him up on Facebook.
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I would love to get invloved, the look of the school is appalling…..Ok i will go to the FB page you stated. I am tired of flying on my own as i need to support where i can. And hey thanks for keeping us posted
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Thanks James for the effort. I my self am an old boy of Nakasero Primary School which was more like a sister school to BRPS, we have an association to revive our school sstandards and i therefore call upon all OBs of BPRS to also come and rescue their school. Allan
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Good idea. We are thinking about something similar.
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The School administration ignored advice twice. You see I was an active parent in this school till last. We would attend the school events and meetings. In one such meeting, I brought to the attention of the management and board of governors that the PLE results showed that this school will always be a B school as the graph was heavy in the middle part of the Bell Curve. Something needed to be done to push the mass of those pupils from lagging in B to A. It seems the system is tongue – tied, unable to make the shift, perhaps begging for a more pragmatic set of solutions. In another meeting, to improve school fees (yes, fees) collection, could the administration consider mobile money which now has school fees payment products. The HM swore that this was impossible.
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its a pity to see such a school that brings up important people in society
go down in ruin just like that. we Nd mobilization.
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How does one get involved in this? Helping…
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Please join the Norman Godinho/ Buganda Road P S group on Facebook. If not on FB, I can give you a number of the coordinator Charles Odaga in private.
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James, thanks for this initiative. Whenever I pass the school, I feel pain and shame topped up with some guilt. I cannot even tell my sons about this school…
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