By Spy Uganda
Kampala: Founded in February 1964 by His Grace Dr Joseph Kiwanuka, the then Metropolitan Archbishop of Kampala Archdiocese, Nswanjere Junior Seminary School is being dragged to court for allegedly torturing one of their own pupils, by starvation to near death.
The 58-year-old is a catholic founded seminary school, located 32 kms along Kampala-Mityana road, and is owned and managed by the Archdiocese of Kampala.
Troubled Parents of the 10 -year old Muzoora Benedict Raymond, a pupil at the mentioned school above have accused the school administration of gross misconduct and mistreatment of their son, whom they claim to have dropped at school on January 10th in good health, only to be called on January 29th 2022 to pick him half dead!
The boy’s father, Benedict Kasoota, an employee with the NSSF Lira branch and mother, Olive Kawino, working with Crest Tank Bujuuko Branch, a Kampala suburb allege that the school administration not only starved their child to near death but also hid from them all information pertaining his health every time the father called the school to talk to him, until 29th January when he was left for dead.
According to Kasota’s Lawyers, Ngamije Law Consultants & Advocates, their client’s son (Muzoora Benedict Raymond) reported to the boarding section of the said school on 10th January 2022 in good and sound health, however after a few days, the boy fell sick and was picked from the above school on 29th January 2022 after the ”staff out of gross negligence declined to offer him proper treatment/or communicate to the parents to seek medical attention elsewhere. Â As a result of the above conduct, the child’s health deteriorated to a near-death situation” Kasota’s lawyers revealed in the documents seen by this website.
The Notice continues…..”Furthermore, your staff continued to mistreat Raymond in an inhuman and degrading manner by beating and forcing him to attend class when he could barely walk and was physically incapacitated. To our Client’s dismay, you packed Raymond’s belongings and rang them to pick him up when he was fighting for his life,” the lawyers added.
According to a medical report from Bantu Medical Centre in Kasangati along Gayaza road where Muzoora was admitted on 25 February 2022, the above conditions subjected to him at school caused him to have excessive urination, weight loss, the blurred vision among other worrying conditions, which could impact him permanently.
”A 10-year-old male with high blood glucose. He had polyphagia, excessive urination, weight loss, blurred vision and polydipsia. The mother informed me that he was got from school a month ago in a worrying state and the school had stated that he had been unwell but never informed the parents,” the medical report reads in part.
”The child confided in me that he had been harassed at school with repeated beatings and no one was listening when he was informing them that he was very weak and couldn’t even walk by himself. This child had a great fear of females and it took me time to show him that I couldn‘t hurt him. Actually, he didn’t trust any of the female staff unless his mother was present”, the medical report added.
According to the health personnel at the facility, Nsambya hospital had given him treatment but the blood glucose was not controlled at all and after being examined the child had also developed thyrotoxicosis and later started him on aggressive treatment.
”In conclusion, this minor got diabetic from a boarding school and there was negligence and failure to attend to him and got complications which could derail his future which are diabetic retinopathy and thyrotoxicosis. So he’s at risk of losing his sight because of negligence at school,’‘ the medical report concluded.
For all the above, the lawyers further contend thus; ”The actions and commissions of gross negligence to impact our Client’s financial as he continues to seek specialized treatments in various health facilities to try and reverse the effects caused by your negligence upon his son”
Now, for the agony and anguish the family is going through to treat the boy, they want a compensation of shs300m including legal fees or they go to court to seek redress.
“The purpose of this letter is therefore to ask you to compensate our client and his son for the permanent injury caused and medical expenses incurred plus our legal fees calculated at a cost of UGX.300,000.0000( Three Hundred Million Uganda Shillings only) within a period of 30 days from the date of delivery of this letter.” Kasota’s lawyers demanded.
School Responds:
In response, when our Spy called the management, the Chairperson of the management committee, Ms Mildred Kahombo Kakusya first threatened our Spy that she would instead sue the media house that would write the story before she hang up. However, only a few minutes when she called back, she argued that she advised the parents to go to court if they had a good case against the seminary instead of running to the media.
The first call Via Phone Number 0772-42836..:Â “First of all, it’s good that Parliament passed the law against ‘social media (meaning the proposed MP Nsereko’s amendment computer misuse bill) who tarnish people’s businesses, write it I will sue you,”she said.
Second call she said thus: “We have recordings of the boy pleading with the father to take him away from the school because he didn’t like the school. The father insisted, and the boy decided to go on a hunger strike himself. Secondly, we called the father to pick up the child and he refused until we now had to call the mother, it’s the mother who picked him up finally. He wrote to me as Chairperson management threatening to go to court and I told him to go ahead, why is he not going but resorting to media?” Mildred argued.
However, when this reporter asked as to why they kept the child up to near death when they knew he had gone on hunger strike as they allege, Mildred responded that for the rest of the questions, we should ask the lawyer.
When we contacted the school Rector, Rev.John Bosco Kiggundu on Tel.0701-80103.. for a comment, he wasn’t different from his committee Chairperson. “It’s a legal matter, that gentleman was given details of our legal team, he can go ahead and sue, we shall meet in court,” he said.
Since the death of its founder, Archbishop Dr Joseph Kiwanika, Nswanjere’s custodianship has been under his respective successors, namely; Their Eminences, Emmanuel Cardinal Nsubuga (rip), Emanuel Cardinal Wamala, Dr.Cyprian Kizito Lwanga (rip) and currently Grace Paul Ssemogerere.
