The magistrates court in Nabweru, Wakiso has sentenced a senior four candidate to two months imprisonment for hiring another person to help her sit for the ongoing UCE exams.
Rebecca Munyesi, 30 a student at St Francis Secondary School in Kawempe on Friday pleaded guilty to charges related to impersonation for conniving with the school headmistress Milly Nanteza Matovu, to procure the services of Asuman Kidawuli to write UCE exams on her behalf in a deal that cost the student shs2.5 million.
The UNEB Act 2021 that came into force this year stipulates that on conviction, an offender is liable to a fine of shs20 million or five year jail term or both for the offence of impersonation.
The headmistress is facing charges related to aiding and abetting impersonation as well as giving false information to UNEB.
On Tuesday, grade one magistrate, Christian Kibuuka said having considered the future of the student and her remorsefulness, jailing her for two years was appropriate.
“By virtue of this charge and appearance in this court, the convict has lost one year of study and can’t catch up with exams. That is not a small loss by whichever standard. The parents of convict will never recover the tuition paid for one year and it is a loss on their side,” Kibuuka said.
The magistrate said the senior four students has lost time and money which he said is a punishment on its own to send a strong message to other would be offenders for the same offence.
“The convict is a young person and is capable of reforming. We want to give her chance to reform.”
He said the student has an option of paying shs200,000 fine instead of serving the two months jail sentence.
The trial magistrate however said that if not satisfied with the punishment, the state has the right to appeal.
Speaking to journalists after the court session, Ann Kemali, the UNEB senior legal officer welcomed the punishment that she said shows courts have started putting urgency on matter concerning exam malpractice.
“Being that this child is still young, we appreciate the spirit behind the sentence but we are praying that something should be done to the headmistress because she is the one who orchestrated this whole process,” Kemali said.
She insisted that cases of exam malpractice ought to be disposed of as quickly as possible to send a stern warning to other would be offenders.
The same court also set December, 5 as the date for the hearing of the case in which the school headmistress is accused of aiding the convicted student to hire a mercenary to sit for her exam.
The headmistress Milly Nanteza Matovu is out on bail.
