Makerere University Fails to Pay Internship Allowances, Students Demand Answers

Every student going for internship or recess is entitled to a minimum of 280,000 Uganda shillings as facilitation towards the activities during that period.

The money is collected from students’ tuition fees as a percentage towards internship allowance. Government students’ allowances are provided by the government.

However, this year, government students maybe at the loosing end as three weeks down the internship and recess time, they have not received a penny nor an official communication from management.

Students demand for answers

Makerere University guild has joined the aggrieving students to demand an explanation from the University officials as to why internship monies for government students have not been reminted to their accounts.

The guild president Julius Kateregga said the issue has greatly disrupted student interns whose placements are far from Kampala and have been budgeting heavily on their share of the allowances.

Ministry of Finance directed Uganda Revenue Authority(URA) to takeover tuition collection from the Public Universities. This, the Makerere University students’ guild say will only excavate the already worse situation and make Universities ‘sterile’.

“Universities have a right to self-autonomy. The intention of government is to turn Makerere into a primary school,”  Kateregga said

University Administration rectifies the situation

According to the University head of media relations Dr. Muhammad Kiggundu, the university is waiting for money from ministry of finance to pay the students.