Police in Uganda on Wednesday fired tear gas to disperse protesting Makerere University students who had assembled at the Freedom Square.
Some of the student leaders were also arrested by the police and detained at unknown locations.
Wednesday’s incident has reportedly disrupted academic activities with several students forced out of the lecture rooms.
Students of the Makerere University have been agitating for days over a 15 percent fee policy.
VIDEO: Police fires teargas and live bullets to disperse Makerere University students who had gathered at Freedom Square this morning for a meeting to decide their next step following the closed-door meeting held with the University Council yesterday. #NTVNews
Details to follow pic.twitter.com/Z2P5OsWqqJ
— NTV UGANDA (@ntvuganda) October 30, 2019
The university council in July 2018 approved the policy that sanctioned a 15 percent increment on both tuition and functional fees, over the next five years.
But the students’ protest forced the top governing body of the the university to announce its decision to relax the policy.
The students argue that the fee increment was unfair and making education services expensive at Uganda’s oldest public university.
@PoliceUg has pumped tear gas in @MakerereU library. Students forced to run for dear life @DailyMonitor @933kfm @ntvuganda pic.twitter.com/oce1n1gTr5
— Stephen Kafeero(DM) (@sdkafeero) October 30, 2019
On Tuesday, the university council agreed to scrap the 15 percent increment from functional fees but maintained that the 15 percent fees adjustment shall be applied on tuition fees for the remaining period of three years.
Student leaders say Wednesday gathering by the students was to inform them about the decision that was arrived at during Tuesday’s meeting with University officials.
President Museveni on Tuesday ordered military police to withdraw from the University campus to allow for amicable resolution of the impasse.
Source: Africafeeds.com
