A total of 710 pupils in primary 1,2,3,4 and 5 at Ajali Lajwa primary School sit on the dusty floor while attending classes due to lack of sitting facilities and its staff sleep grass thatched leaking staff houses, the school is located in Otupili village Lokole subcounty in Agago district.
According to Omwony Richard Oketcho, a teacher at the school this challenge has been in existence for the last four years at this only government primary school the sub county has.
He added that it has greatly contributed to learners drop out and poor performance, because they cannot steadily concentrate on their studies as well as improving their handwriting as the environment doesn't favor them.
Another teacher Anying Frisca said the uncomfortable sitting arrangement of pupils while learning always leads to mental unpreparedness of the learners as they always feel back pain and of course their books and uniforms are always dirty due to the dusty environment.
Anying also complained about diseases contaminated to both pupils and teachers because long term exposure to dust in most cases leads to major allergic reactions, cough, flu eye defects and jiggers which are life threatening defects.
Besides the lack of furniture, Otim John Justin, a primary five science teacher raised a concern of lack of permanent staff houses for the nine teachers, adding that for decades the school has stayed without permanent houses that can fit teachers standards.
He says the available grass thatched hats were raised by the community.
The Ajali Lajwa School administration faulted the district education officials for not doing enough at inspecting the schools so that the school shared their challenges to them.
Bosco Odongokar, Agago district inspector of schools refuted the allegations that they are sleeping on the job noting that they carry out a periodic inspection of schools and reports on the challenges in schools are provided to the ministry but there is compliance.
"Our schools are crippled. We wanted to decongest the classes but we cannot, we wanted to buy desks and build permanent houses for teachers but we don't have the resources,"Odongokar said.
Ajali Lajwa primary school is a government Universal primary school established in 1980 by the Catholic church and it has a total of 1036 pupils and nine teachers paid by government.
