Museveni slams school leaders
2008-04-16 22:47
Kampala - Uganda's president accused school authorities of negligence on Wednesday, two days after a suspicious fire swept through a dormitory, killing 19 girls.
The blaze was Uganda's third deadly school fire in two years. Police launched a homicide investigation after finding that the doors were locked from the outside.
President Yoweri Museveni questioned why the dormitory matron escaped unscathed. It was unclear on Wednesday whether she had been in the room when the building caught fire.
"There are signs that there was negligence by the school administration," Museveni said. "The dormitories were once classrooms and are not suitable for students to sleep in."
Police have made no statement yet on the exact cause of the fire but said it was suspicious.
Ten-year-old Jennifer Naaco told Museveni during his visit to the Buddo boarding school that she had been inside at the time but was carried outside by a fellow student.
"I cannot sleep at night properly because I keep on dreaming about my dead friends," she said.
The school, which has about 1 000 students, is located 12 kilometres from the capital, Kampala. Teacher Frederick Bugmbe said there were 58 girls in the dormitory. He said many were able to wriggle out of the dormitory windows.
Museveni said the government will pay for the survivors' medical care and for DNA tests to help parents identify the bodies of their children, many of which were burned beyond recognition.
- AP