By Our Reporter
TORORO
Uganda Business Technical Examination Board has withheld transcripts of all students of Uganda College of Commerce UCC Tororo after the college failed to remit examination fees to the examining board.
Before students sit for exams, they are supposed to pay a given fee to UBTEB that later releases the transcripts to students through the office of the academic registrar.
However, the college registrar, Veronica Nasirumbi says ever since she reported to UCC in May this year, students who sat their exams since 2018 have been flooding her office demanding for their transcripts.
Nasirumbi says when she tried following up from UBTEB after pressure from students, she established that the school is being demanded over 73 million after government remitted 27 million for the government sponsored students
She revealed that UBTEB is not willing to release any transcript if the institution does not clear the huge balance it demands
Meanwhile, the college is supposed to hold its 8th graduation on 19th November 2021 but the registrar says without UBTEB releasing the names of the students who qualify for the event, the forthcoming graduation stands to be a scam
“My office is supposed to receive the names, verify and stamp but am equally in the dark about the currently circulating list,” she told this reporter.
On Saturday, a group of students held a press conference on the matter where they say all of them paid for the examination fee.
Emmanuel Owori Obbo, a student at the college, says as students, they started raising suspicions when they were told to be paying the overestimated graduation fee in an examination account instead of the college account.
Paul Emorut, one of alumni said he has so far spent over 300,000 coming from his home district of Katakwi to the college looking for his transcript sadly, the administration has always bounced back.
The disgruntled students then petitioned the office of the Speaker of Parliament to institute a parliamentary commission of inquiry to investigate both financial and management challenges at the college that they say is currently operating at free will.
The students equally demanded for the halting of the ongoing graduation preparation until all the messes are cleared.
The College Deputy Principal, Geoffrey Kainja says some of the students alleging such complaints have retakes and are just aiming at disorganizing the ceremony. However he noted that his office will try to investigate the said debt that he has also been hearing rumors about.
Meanwhile there was poor turn up in the college as universities and tertiary institutions resumed operations on Monday as per the President’s directive.
The college had almost all lecturers report but with very few students to attend to.
Kainja says the college has purchased all necessary equipment that will ensure SOPs are kept in the intuition including temperature guns and hand washing facilities.
