Time to quash rising gang culture in Mbale City schools

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OPINION

By Ahmed Wetaka

The brutal murder of Wasike Shafik, a Senior Four student at Mbale High School on Monday evening, is a gut-wrenching reminder of how far the rot of gang violence has spread in our school communities. What began as petty rivalries and turf wars among students has now evolved into deadly confrontations that claim innocent lives — in this case, a young student whose only crime was trying to get an education.

We strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and extend our deepest condolences to Shafik's family, friends, and the Mbale High School community. But condolences alone are not enough. It is time for decisive action.

The fact that gangs can organise and carry out such a brutal attack — reportedly in connection with inter-school rivalries involving institutions like Nkoma Secondary School and Mbale SS — points to an alarming failure on multiple fronts. School administrators, security agencies, and even parents have all failed to take this growing threat seriously. The tendency to treat these violent acts as isolated incidents rather than symptoms of a deeper, systemic problem is dangerous and unacceptable.

Let us be honest: some parts of Mbale City have effectively been colonised by these youth gangs. They rule through fear, intimidate fellow students, and now feel emboldened enough to spill blood. They operate like mini-militias, recruiting teenagers, marking territories, and settling scores in the most brutal of ways. These are not mere "schoolboy disagreements." They are criminal enterprises in the making.

We must call out the schools that have failed to discipline rogue students, the parents who have ignored warning signs, and the security forces that have been reactive rather than proactive. This murder should be a turning point, not just another statistic brushed aside with "investigations are ongoing."

The Uganda Police Force, particularly the leadership of the territorial command in Mbale, must rise to the occasion. It is not enough to deploy officers after an incident. We need sustained operations to dismantle these gangs, arrest their ringleaders, and restore order. Surveillance, intelligence gathering, and school-based outreach programs must be scaled up immediately.

This is also a moment for community leaders, religious institutions, and local governments to unite in a city-wide campaign to reclaim our schools and streets. Gang culture thrives in environments of neglect and impunity. We must change that narrative — with urgency.

Wasike’s life was cut short, but let his death not be in vain. Let it be the trigger for bold, collective action to end the culture of gang violence in Mbale. We owe it to his memory — and to every student who still walks to school in fear.

The writer is a concerned parent