Parliament has tabled an amendment bill from the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) which seeks to address the loopholes in the current Act. The State Minister for Primary Education, Ms Rosemary Seninde tabled the bill in parliament.
The bill suggests very tough penalties for anyone found guilty of exam malpractice. It provides that a person who before or during an examination has in his or her possession any examination paper or material commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding Shillings 40 million or a term of 10 years imprisonment or both.
The same penalties will apply to misuse of examination registration fees and a person who assists or causes a candidate to obtain an examination paper or material. Where the convicted person is a registered teacher, he or she shall be disciplined with relevant laws of the teaching profession.
Loss or misuse of examination paper, material or information and damaging or destruction of the same, by those having possession is also an offense and on conviction. They will be liable to a fine of Shillings 20 million or imprisonment not exceeding 10 years. This same penalty is proposed for impersonation.
The other defects in the current law identified by government are that penalties in the current Act are weak and therefore need enhancement to make them more meaningful and restrictive to match the objectives of the regulatory framework.
