Kampala — THE parliamentary committee on social services wants parents who keep children of school-going age from attending classes arrested and prosecuted.

Committee chairperson James Kubeketerya said local authorities were obliged to enforce the measure in order to address the alarming drop-out rate in Government-aided primary schools.

Kubeketerya made the remarks on Monday during a meeting with Butaleja district leaders held at Nabanda Hall.

The committee earlier made unannounced visits to a number of schools in the district, among them Nabiganda and Busolwe Township primary schools.

Kubeketerya said the committee observed that some of the schools project a 'grim future'.

"A visit to these schools has shocked all of us. The number of girls in nearly all classes were more than that of boys. What has happened to the boys in this part of the country?" he wondered.

Kubeketerya told the district leaders that the teachers and pupils of the schools they visited disclosed that boys dodged classes to do odd jobs in rice gardens. The main economic activity in Butaleja is paddy rice growing.

Some of the jobs the youngsters do include scaring away birds in rice gardens and weeding.

"Local authorities should not sit back but work collectively to save the future of the young generation," said Kubeketerya.

The committee also noted that the district was in need of more classrooms as the population of the pupils in each class was beyond the recommended number.

Performance in the national exams registered by the schools they visited was also poor.

The district chairperson, Richard Waya, asked the legislators to lift the ban on recruitment of teachers, saying the small teaching staff was overworked.