Education CS Machogu denies KCSE exam cheating claims
Education CS Ezekiel Machogu when he appeared before the National Assembly Education and Research Committee at Radisson Blue Hotel in Nairobi on April 13, 2023.
Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu yesterday released finer details of the 2022 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination results, as he defended his ministry against claims that there was massive cheating while insisting that candidates deserve the results they got.
“What our students got was the real grade. The propaganda is unfounded. The examination was credible; integrity was not compromised,” he said.
Mr Machogu sought to set the record straight when he appeared before the National Assembly Education and Research Committee, which is investigating claims of massive cheating in the exams.
The probe was sparked by a national outcry following the release of the KCSE results that saw Nyambaria High School top the charts with a mean score of 10.90, flooring traditional top performers.
Mang’u High School produced the highest number of As at 82. Nyambaria had 28 candidates scoring the coveted grade.
Mr Machogu challenged the MPs to table credible evidence of cheating. Committee chair Julius Melly (Tinderet) said some of the evidence will be heard in camera at a later date.
Marakwet West MP Timothy Kipchumba accused the CS of adopting a defensive stance instead of investigating the issues raised. He challenged Mr Machogu to take responsibility in case it was proved the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) was culpable.
Acknowledged irregularities
Mr Machogu acknowledged several cases of irregularities reported but insisted they were not enough to warrant cancellation of results.
There were 20 suspected cases of collusion reported by examiners during marking after they presented similar answers but, upon investigation, they were found not to meet the threshold for cancellation. Some candidates were found in possession of unauthorised examination material.
Candidates in 14 centres attempted to sneak mobile phones into the examination rooms while three cases of impersonation were reported.
The committee has held public hearings in which various stakeholders have made presentations to show that the examinations were marred by irregularities. The presentation from the ministry will be the last before the MPs retreat to write a report.
Mr Machogu said some schools especially from Nyamira and Kisii counties had been unfairly targeted. He added that some schools published erroneous mean scores to show that they had performed better than they did.
“Kisii and Nyamira counties actually had the least number of grade As in the Nyanza region. Siaya County had the highest number with 72, followed by Homa Bay and Migori with 62 and Kisumu with 59. Kisii had 51 As while Nyamira had 30,” Mr Machogu said.
Knec CEO David Njeng’ere dismissed claims that some candidates had access to marking schemes beforehand, saying that examiners prepare the document only after the candidates have sat the examination.
Dr Njeng’ere revealed that moderation of the examination results is usually done but in adherence to international standards. He was responding to a question by Mandera South MP Abdul Ebrahim, who claimed that no candidate from Wajir has ever scored an A since independence.
