Roman Catholic Church owned Bakhita Girls Secondary School in Balaka has been called out for its policy of not admitting asthmatic children to the school.
An application form from the school which has been shared on social media indicate that the boarding school does not admit children who suffer from asthma.
“Asthmatic children are not admitted to Bakhita Girls Secondary School. If found later, dismissal will take place immediately,” the K340,000 per term private school says on its application form.
On social media where the form has been shared widely, many have pointed out that it is discriminatory to reject students based on a particular health condition.
In a comment on Gerald Kampanikiza’s Facebook page, a social media user identified as Patrick Makoka said argued that denying admission or dismissing students solely on the basis of their medical condition is a violation of their fundamental human rights.
Makoka further said that the school has shown lack of understanding and empathy by excluding asthmatic children.
“Overall, this act by Bakhita Girls Secondary School is discriminatory, lacks compassion, and fails to uphold principles of inclusivity and equal rights. It is important to challenge and criticize such practices to foster a more inclusive and understanding society,” Makoka said.
Another commenter said: “The world is now advocating for inclusive education. So if every school is doing the same then that means asthmatic people should not be accommodated in schools? What a shame!!”
Commenting on another Facebook post on the same, a Facebook user said Bakhita should not be operating a boarding institution for children if it cannot manage asthmatic children.
“The reason is there are worse health afflictions that can affect kids at any point. A school should have a proper medical system to handle kids ailments before taking them to a health facility. This ailment is not a special needs kind of ailment. It’s as good as saying if you have malaria we will dismiss you… It’s madness,” the commenter wrote.
However, others have supported the saying it has admitted that it cannot manage students with asthma and parents are free to take their children elsewhere.
“This rule can’t just come out of nothing. It means they have an awful experience with the ailment. Moreover, asthmatic children need parental care, they’re vulnerable kids,” one person said.
On Twitter, a former student of the school wrote: “We used to have asthmatic people during my time, the area itself isn’t conducive for them. It gets cold as hell, and the administration would be overwhelmed. A few years later and the issue kept getting worse, I think that’s what prompted the idea to not allow them anymore.”
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