Police and education officials in Nyamira are investigating the alleged beating of a Grade Eight pupil at Bitundugusu Primary School, which led to swelling of his scrotum, subsequent surgery, and removal of his testicle.
The incident follows another in the county a week ago after a teacher commandeered Grade Four pupils to pin down a classmate so he could beat the boy, seriously injuring him.
The latest incident took place at Bitundugusu Primary School in Kitutu Masaba Constituency and the boy who lost his testicle is still at Bosongo Hospital, a private health facility in Kisii County.
Medical staff at the hospital told the Nation that the boy was taken to the health facility with extremely swollen private parts and was admitted.
Upon examination, the doctors found that one of his testicles was irreparably damaged in what they called 'testicular torsion', forcing them to undertake a surgical procedure to relieve the excruciating pain the boy was experiencing.
"He was brought to us in a critical condition. We performed an emergency operation on him last Friday. He is still recovering, but is too weak to even walk," said a nurse.
The Nation has established that testicular torsion can be caused by, among other things, a minor injury to the testicle area or an injury to the groin.
It occurs when a testicle rotates, twisting the spermatic cord that takes blood to the scrotum. The reduced blood flow causes sudden and often severe pain and swelling. It mainly affects teenagers.
The teenager was referred to Bosongo Hospital from Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH). Surgeons at KTRH suggested that he be transferred to the private facility for a quick intervention, as emergency surgery was crucial.
However, medics at Bosongo said they had not been informed that the boy had been beaten at school.
At Getare Dispensary in Nyamira County, where the 15-year-old boy was taken before being referred to KTRH, medics noted that the boy was in pain after being beaten by his teachers on Friday, March 24.
Police in Nyamira confirmed that the boy's mother had filed an assault report under OB number 14/03/04/2023 and that investigations had begun to establish the circumstances under which the teachers assaulted the boy.
Officers from Manga Police Station also visited Bosongo Hospital on Tuesday to continue their investigations.
Nyamira County Police Commander James Mitugo said the matter had been reported to them and they were investigating.
"We have the case and we are pursuing it," Mr Mitugo said.
Education officials from Manga sub-county visited the school on Tuesday as they began investigating the incident.
The incident, which is the second reported case of corporal punishment in the county, has led to heavy criticism of the teachers by an outraged public, which has appealed to the Ministry of Education to rein in rebellious teachers who break the code of discipline for schoolchildren.
"My son will never father a child," lamented the distraught mother, accusing the teachers of damaging her son's future.
But doctors say the boy is now out of danger and could have children in the future, even with the one testicle.
The Nation visited the school on Wednesday and spoke to the deputy headteacher, Mr Elkanah Omari.
We asked him if he knew about the boy who was allegedly castrated after being beaten up by two teachers at school.
"I don't know anything about it," said Mr Omari, who added: "If you give me 20 minutes, I will go and get some information from a hospital where this boy has been. He was sick.... When I come back, I will give you accurate information."
The Nation asked him where the headteacher, who was allegedly one of those who brutalised the boy, was, and he said he had gone to a meeting.
He said the maths teacher, who was also said to have taken part in the beating after the boy insulted a girl classmate during a disagreement, was also out. He had gone to organise a sports activity in a neighbouring school.
The deputy headmaster later changed his version of the story, telling journalists that the boy was known to suffer from "genital problems" and had previously been treated at a hospital he refused to name.
Reporters asked him to name the hospital, but he replied: "That's my secret weapon and I will reveal it if and when things get tough."
He later promised to give us a report from the hospital within 20 minutes after refusing to accompany us to the unnamed facility, but he was nowhere to be seen. Our phone calls also went unanswered.
Narrating her son's ordeal, the distraught mother said her son told her of the brutal beating two days after it happened. It was Sunday evening when he fell by the door. She asked him why he was having trouble walking. She had thought he had a boil.
"He told me that his teachers had beaten him up after he and another pupil argued in school," said his mother.
"After I spoke to him, he told me that the headmaster and another teacher had beaten him up badly and that he had a lot of pain in his genitals. He couldn't walk or sit up properly. Later, I went to the school to ask what had happened to my son, but I was chased away," said the tearful mother.
The mother later asked her older son to find out why the boy had been injured. She explained that after her older son found the headmaster, he asked him why they had beaten his brother so badly that he could not walk.
"The headmaster denied beating the boy. My son started an argument with the headteacher, but he backed down and we took the boy to the hospital," said the mother of four.
At Bosongo Hospital, journalists found the boy in excruciating pain. He was distraught and not speaking much, saying his teachers had beaten him.
The Nation cannot reveal the name of the victim and his parents at this time for the sake of their privacy.
The boy's mother broke down in tears after explaining that doctors had operated on her son and that he had lost one of his testicles.
"Why has God forsaken me?" she cried. "How will my son live with the reality that he now has only one testicle ... How am I going to raise two children with special needs? My other son has a medical condition that I struggle to take care of. Now they have added another one!"
The mother appealed to Education CS Ezekiel Machogu to personally intervene in the matter and bring to book those responsible for her son's injuries.
