There was a time when wishing a candidate well before examinations meant a handwritten card sometimes with sweets or some little banknotes slipped in it, a hug at the school gate, a few encouraging words and perhaps a packet of biscuits slipped into a schoolbag. Today, that simple tradition appears to be taking a different turn as some parents are arriving at schools with money bouquets, wads of cash, brand-new iPhones and, in at least one reported case, a car.
A parent recently gifted her daughter a car ahead of her Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) examinations. In another instance, a mother presented her son with UGX 1 million in front of his classmates. Others have made elaborate presentations involving expensive smartphones and bouquets of banknotes. These moments are often recorded and shared on social media, inviting public admiration for the gifts and the parents behind them.
There is nothing wrong with parents wanting to encourage their children since every family has the right to express love and support according to its means. A thoughtful gift can be meaningful, and parents who can afford expensive presents should not be condemned simply for buying them. The problem, however, arises when these gestures are staged at school, before an audience of other learners, and subsequently broadcast online.
At what point does a parent’s desire to wish their child success become an opportunity to display wealth?
Consider the children watching from the sidelines because some will return home to families capable of buying them expensive gifts. Others will receive a simple success card, a reassuring hug or a few words of encouragement from parents who may already be struggling to pay their school fees. Many of these children have worked just as hard and are preparing for the same examinations. Yet, before they even enter the examination room, they are being exposed to a spectacle that can make financial privilege appear synonymous with achievement.
A success wish should communicate something simple: do your best, we believe in you, and we love you regardless of the outcome. It should not become an opportunity to establish a hierarchy among learners based on their parents’ purchasing power.
The cameras make the situation even more troubling. When a parent presents a lavish gift before an audience, records the occasion and shares it online, the focus risks shifting from the child to the person gifting. The occasion becomes a spectacle, inviting questions about whether the intention is to encourage the candidate or to attract admiration, likes and comments.
It is difficult to ignore the attention-seeking element of some of these displays, particularly when the presentation appears designed to impress an audience. The child becomes the centerpiece of a public demonstration of what the parent can afford.
Social media can further encourage this behaviour. One extravagant presentation becomes a benchmark for another, creating an unspoken competition in which money bouquets, expensive phones and cars threaten to overshadow the very purpose of a success wish. Parents who cannot afford such gifts may feel inadequate, while children may begin to associate academic milestones with material rewards.
There is also the question of privacy. Classmates who happen to be present may find themselves appearing in videos shared widely online without their consent. Little consideration may be given to how these recordings could affect their self-esteem, relationships or sense of belonging.
Schools should be environments where learners are treated with dignity and equality, not stages for public displays of family wealth. School administrations should therefore establish and enforce clear guidelines prohibiting extravagant gift presentations on school premises, particularly those conducted before classmates for publicity or social media content. Parents should remain free to celebrate and encourage their children privately, according to their means.
Ultimately, what a candidate needs before examinations is not necessarily an expensive gift. It is a calm environment in which to study, emotional support, reassurance and the confidence that their parents believe in them.
A parent can give a child a car, a phone or a bouquet filled with money, but none of these things should become the measure of how much a family values education or loves its children.
Perhaps it is time we asked a more uncomfortable question: when a parent turns up at school with an expensive gift, a camera and an audience, is the moment really about wishing the child success, or is the child’s big day being used to showcase the parent’s wealth?
A genuine success wish should build a child’s confidence, not turn their classmates into an audience for a parent’s spending power
