Ugandan President says studying Humanities is useless: Seriously?

The Future of Uganda and Africa at large at large is inextricably within the ambit of its leaders.

Over time I have heard people complain about the leadership in Uganda and the continent at large. well, that's a  shallow argument that we both agree is quite obvious, maybe for the ordinary man its not because his well being is highly Dependant on what the government or the state has to offer. yes the government.

On many occasions I have interacted with colleagues of mine who subscribe to the belief that every man determines his own destiny and there fore its stupid to blame the government for  one's poor state of living.

Well on the surface yes but an in-depth analysis will invalidate this belief to a total sham. Why? Every one is where he is and is doing what he is doing because he got there through a process not a miracle;  either through learning (education) or by experience and accepted it to be truth or at least compatible to his or her lifestyle. In other words he has had a viable opportunity, explored the opportunity and hence evaluated his potential and ability.

 You are properly a lawyer  because you went to a good school where you were encouraged to be one, had a parent or relative in the profession, got exposed to platforms like debate that gave you a feel of what a lawyer might be like and with time developed the love for the profession which love manifested into the will and then with the passion attached to this whole thing the possibility of you becoming a lawyer became more and more clear.

However we shall all agree that a good education is the basic foundation of such a vision, yes. because without a good foundation  the rest becomes mere wishes.

So how about the poor old man in some village in some district in some corner of this country whose only hope for his son's or daughter's bright future is in the hands of the so called U.P.E and U.S.E. I called it "the so called" because its being called Universal sounds to be an abstract name that seems only to appears good put in practice has no real life to the effect, one may ask; whats universal about it? is it the curriculum?, the teachers?, the subjects? or its "confusion"?
The mere fact that all Ugandans can access this type of education in my opinion doesn't make it Universal. In fact it makes it domestic vehicle to canvas for popular support among the elecorate by the NRM government.

Secondly it should never appear to be an offer by the government which in our case seems like it is and hence the government feels that its not obligated to offer quality after all it was a free gift! The government is wrong and if you were thinking the same then you to are wrong. Education is your right and a constitutional obligation of the government to provide it.

But what does this education provide? Uganda as of today has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world standing at 62% among the youth as of 2013. But amazingly recently the Head of State blamed the Humanities (courses at University) for causing the unemployment but one wondres if its not under his governance that licences are offered to Universities? So why should our head of State whine like his citizens instead of initiating policy to change the status quo? Is it rocket science? Is it asking too much? My argument in this regard is poor government policy towards education that is the core to the unemployment problem.

So with such a poor education though free but poor how can a nation or state expect its citizens to miraculously develop knowledge, expertise and will to develop themselves given that this is a fast changing competitive world and economy not forgetting that today most graduates are unemployed and the few employed are in the informal sector and those in the formal sector are either doing a job way below their qualifications or the pay way below their educational level .

 So would I be wrong to say that the government is to be held accountable? I don't think so. And if you still disagree, ask your self this; why do we need the govt anyway if it can't provide for its citizens basic requirements of life  quality basic education even after taxes have been paid? Not forgeting that a working adult pays 30% PAYE on his salary monthly and remember am not demanding for a spaceship research institution or a rocket engineering institution, just basic quality education.

There fore the best gift that the Ugandan and African Leaders can give its people and the continent is equality education which can only be acquired if there is political will to that effect. The private sector can help boost the education system but its role should be secondary not primary. 

"Without the political will in respect to education, Uganda and the continent at large is headed for a dark intellectual age." 

ONESMUS MWESIGWA 
LLB Student at  Uganda Christian University-
Political Analyst
Uganda- East Africa