How MPs are denying bursaries to bright but needy students
Education CS George Magoha (2nd left) who has directed Ministry officials to trace all the 2020 KCPE candidates who are yet to join Form One and ensure they go to school.
Moses Shindani was overjoyed when he scored 394 marks in the 2020 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE).
He was selected to join Butula Boys High School.
But his dreams were cut short when his parents told him he had to stay home like his elder brother, who had dropped out of school because they could not afford tuition fees for the national school he was selected to join.
The Kibarani slum dweller accepted his fate.
“There was nothing more we could do as his parents. It is sad, very sad, to see your child cry because you cannot pay his fees,” said his father Alvayo Shindani, 43.
The father of six said his son aspires to be a doctor but his dream remains a mirage due to poverty.
The bright boy’s primary education had been sponsored by Geoffrey Mwangi, the director of Bethsaida Academy in Mikindani.
“He is a bright and hardworking boy. I sponsored his education in primary school. But we are now looking for sponsors to take him to secondary school,” he said.
The boy’s father said Moses’s elder sibling had also dropped out of school because of a lack of fees.
“I have three children in secondary schools. Two girls are at Moi Kadzondzo, and their elder brother was at Shimo la Tewa High School but he was sent away due to a lack of fees four months ago. He dropped out in Form Three. I have tried everything but things are difficult,” he said.
The boy missed the National Government Constituency Development Fund scholarship.
“We applied for many scholarship opportunities but I guess he wasn’t lucky. It was sad that even CDF denied my son an opportunity. Poverty is bad. Pray for anything else but not poverty,” he said.
Biosa Hassan, 14, is another student who was denied a CDF scholarship in Jomvu after scoring 355 marks in her KCPE at Novel Junior School. She was selected to join Moi Forces Academy in Mtongwe.
“I live in Bangladesh with my mother, who couldn’t afford my fees,” she said.
The two children’s tears were wiped away when Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha personally escorted them to school.
Prof Magoha took Moses to Shimo La Tewa Boys while Biosa was placed at Mama Ngina Girls.
The CS asked the CDF officials in Jomvu to explain criteria used in selecting deserving students.
“Let them go as they are, without uniform. I wore my first school uniform when I joined secondary school. But how can all these learners be at home yet there’s CDF?” he said.
“Let’s be serious and stop politicking on matters to do with education. We must give all the children the same opportunity. Don’t discriminate and reward your loyalists.”
While leading a multi-sectoral door-to-door campaign in Jomvu sub-county, Mombasa, to trace learners who had not reported to school, Prof Magoha urged politicians to give scholarships to deserving learners and not their relatives or their voters.
Jomvu CDF officials and Jomvu MP Badi Twalib’s personal assistant Hamza Kombo were at pains to explain to the CS what the money had done to ensure learners went to school.
“We hope it’s not the faceless children who were given scholarships. All the children are important to us. There’s a child who got 394 marks. Why didn’t you take him to school? Why did you have to wait for me?” asked the CS.
The officials told the CS that the two missed the sub-county bursaries because they studied in private primary schools.
“What do you mean by private primary schools? All children belong to the government. They deserve equal treatment. We must ensure those who got lower marks but come from poor families get the scholarship. I appeal to all Kenyans who are able to help take children to school,” Prof Magoha said.
In Kisauni, four children were yet to join secondary school due to a lack of fees. They had missed out on bursaries.
Prof Magoha said the national government had given out 9,000 bursaries to help children to go to school.
“These are government children. They deserve scholarships. All government officers should take children to school and ensure they get scholarships,” he said.
In Taita Taveta, Aisha Umazi, who studied at Sasenyi Primary School, was yet to join either Mwasere Girls or Moi Girls due to lack of fees.
The girl, who scored 320 marks, was selected to join either of the two schools and has asked well-wishers to help her complete secondary education.
Prof Magoha said President Uhuru Kenyatta’s directive that 100 per cent of pupils transition to secondary school must be followed.
