Baringo MPs say Magoha's directives bad for the marginalised

Three MPs from Baringo County have threatened to sponsor a motion to impeach Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha over what they termed as "bogus" directives that they said are further marginalising the disadvantaged.

Baringo South MP Charles Kamuren, Daniel Tuitoek (Mogotio) and Joshua Kandie (Baringo Central) claimed that the education sector is on the brink of collapsing courtesy of Prof Magoha’s directives, which they said are issued without proper consultations with relevant parties.

They cited the entry requirements for the diploma in primary teachers' education programme, the directive to ban hiring of school buses for private events and the decision to merge schools that have less than 40 candidates for the 2021 national examinations as the issues of concern.

Ill-advised

Mr Kandie claimed that the new requirements on diploma training were ill-advised and many applicants including those from the region did not qualify.

“We have a teachers’ training college in Baringo Central but to our dismay, there are few learners and none from this region secured an admission because they did not qualify. The Ministry of Education should review the qualifications that sabotage learning,” said Mr Kandie.

The qualifications set by the ministry required an applicant to have a C plain in the KCSE exam and a C in two art subjects or languages.

The new programme phased out the P1 teacher training, marking the beginning of the introduction of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) that will see teachers trained from college.

Impeach

“If the CS will not heed to the demands, I promise to sponsor a motion and mobilise my counterparts to impeach Prof Magoha for messing up with the sector because if this trend continues, learners from the marginalised areas that are still grappling with education will be disadvantaged,” he added.

Details have emerged that only 400 students qualified for the diploma programme and were admitted to only five colleges, leaving out the other 30 without any student due to the small number of learners.

The five colleges that absorbed the new cohorts are Baringo TTC, Thogoto, Machakos, Igoji and Migori.

In the early childhood and development education (ECDE) diploma programme, only 200 students met the entry requirements set by the ministry.

School buses

MPs Kamuren and Tuitoek also faulted the CS over the move to ban hiring of school buses for private events, claiming that they were bought by parents and the ministry has no authority to dictate on their use.

Mr Tuitoek termed the directives as pedestrian, noting that the Constitution demands that public participation should be carried out before introduction of new rules.

“Most of the school buses in this country were bought by parents to assist the learners and also the community. We want to tell the minister that he has no right to dictate on what we bought using the constituency fund and fundraisers from parents. If that is the case, then they should buy their own [buses],” said Tuitoek.

“If the CS will be adamant in reviewing the directives, we are ready to impeach him in parliament. We have the numbers anyway,” he added.

No public participation 

MP Kamuren also said the directive by the examination council (Knec) to merge schools with less than 40 candidates will not apply among the pastoralist communities and in rural areas which he said are still behind in development.

“Whom did the CS consult before issuing such directives and were the parents and teachers involved? He should review such proposals because it could impede learning in the far flung areas with few learners,” said Kamuren.

“You cannot wake up one day and dictate things without knowing if it will work or not. The CS is gambling with the education sector at the detriment of our children and we will not sit and watch,” he added.

In the new directive released on June 11, 2021, all public and private schools with less than 40 candidates will be hosted by another neighbouring centre with more than 40 candidates during the 2021 KCPE and KCSE examinations.

It also indicated that the host school should be located within the sub-county where the hosted schools are and should be served from one distribution point.

A spot check by the Nation revealed that most of the schools in the lower areas of Baringo North including Kagir, Yatya, Chemoe, Barketiew and Kamwetio primary schools have less than 15 candidates each.

Among other schools that are also grappling with enrolment owing to incessant banditry attacks include Baruyo, Kasiela, Sinoni, Arabal, Chemorong’ion, Mukutani, Noosukro, Kesumet, Loruk, Kosile, Barketiew and Kapturo.

Walk for long hours

The MPs also cited distance as a major impediment to the directive since most learning institutions are several kilometers apart, which would force learners to walk for long hours to get to the neighbouring school.

The situation is the same  in Tiaty Sub-County where enrolment and retention is a problem owing to retrogressive cultural practices and scarcity of schools, forcing learners to drop out due to long distances they have to cover to get to school.

Judah Losutan, an elder from Nginyang’ in Tiaty West, said the directive will sabotage learning in the area and parents, most of whom are illiterate, will withdraw their children from school.

He indicated that most schools in Tiaty are more than 30kms away from most homes and there is no way a parent, , would allow children to walk for such distances in the name of exams.

“A school like Toplen Primary School has less than 15 candidates and the neighbouring school, Nakoko Primary, which also has 12, is more than 20kms away. Are they expecting our children to walk all the way to sit examinations? [This is not possible], unless they tell us they want to sabotage learning in the pastoralist communities by giving such skewed directives,” said Mr Losutan.

Among schools in Tiaty Sub-County that have low enrollment include Akwichatis, Toplen, Kositei, Katikit, Lokis, Nakoko, Chesakam, Riong’o, Komolion and Chepkalacha among others.