Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Deputy Secretary General Hesbon Otieno on Thursday, June 29, hinted that school principals were clutching on straws financially and were left with no choice but to transfer the fees burden to parents just to keep schools afloat.
Speaking in an interview with Radio Citizen, Otieno accused Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu of making false promises to parents and school principals that the government had already disbursed funds to schools.
Further, he noted that principals were finding themselves in a tight spot because an overwhelming majority of parents believed Machogu pitting him against the school principals who complained that they did not have funds to procure basic necessities in schools.
“When the government is saying that they have disbursed funds to schools, the parents believe the government more than they believe the school principals.
“When the Education CS says that the government has disbursed the capitation, parents think the principals are lying yet they cannot buy necessities like books and food for the schools,” stated Otieno.
The Deputy SG accused Machogu of playing politics with the school heads adding that his promises were a way of making the public believe that the government was doing a good job yet the reality was very different.
To continue educating students and providing a conducive learning environment, Otieno stated that school principals will have to ask parents to pay more fees.
He asked parents to understand the situation the school heads were in, absolving them (principals) of plotting mint money from the directive.
“This is just politics to show that the government is working. The principals will have no choice but to increase the fees.
“For the school to run efficiently, there is no other way to get these funds. The only other option is to go back to the parents and tell them the truth. The principals have to go and find that money from the parents,” he added.
Additionally, he asked Machogu to refrain from painting a bad picture of principals adding that as long as schools were not receiving funding from the government, they had no other way to run them.
“The CS should not say that the principals are forcing parents to give money, parents have to understand that education must continue. It is not a threat, it is the reality of things.
Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu on Wednesday, June 28, stated that the government intended to recruit over 24,000 teachers to bridge the gap experienced across schools countrywide at the start of the 2023/2024 Financial Year.
He added that starting July 1, the government would not disburse capitation to schools through a quarterly system but instead, school heads will receive capitation in the ratio of 50:30:20 for the first, second and third terms respectively.
