Woman arrested after 26 pupils fall ill after eating white ants at Luuka school

What the report says

Police in Luuka District are investigating a suspected food-related illness that affected 26 pupils at Buwanda Primary School after they ate white ants brought to class. According to Nile Post, the insects were allegedly carried to school by a Primary Three pupil and shared with classmates, after which several children began complaining of stomach pain and other symptoms during the school day.

The pupils were first taken to Ikonia Health Centre III and later referred to Kiyunga Health Centre IV for further care. Health workers treated all 26 children, and the article says they survived. Police have said it is still too early to conclude the pupils were poisoned, and investigators are checking whether the insects were contaminated or otherwise unsafe.

A 37-year-old woman from Buyoola Village in Nawampiti Sub-county was arrested and is being held at Nawampiti Police Station. Police said the child involved indicated that the white ants had come from her mother, but the woman denied wrongdoing and said other family members ate the same food without getting sick. No poisoning charge had been established at the time of reporting.

The case has prompted calls for a thorough investigation and renewed attention to food safety around items children bring to school. In general, white ants are eaten in parts of Uganda as a seasonal food, but authorities in this case are focusing on whether the food was contaminated and where it came from.