Tambach Boys High School in Elgeyo Marakwet County has been closed indefinitely after students staged a protest in the early hours of Monday morning, marching to Iten town.
The school’s principal, Michael Cheruiyot, confirmed the closure on Monday, noting that minimal damage was witnessed and that the Board of Management had convened a crisis meeting to assess the situation and plan the next steps.
Students left the school compound at around 3am in what appeared to be a coordinated protest, drawing attention from residents as they made their way to Iten town.
Eyewitnesses reported that the learners looked agitated but remained largely peaceful during the march, prompting concerns among members of the public and education officials.
Images and videos obtained by Kenyans.co.ke showed the students marching in their numbers to the town's central business district (CBD). However, there were no major incidents of rampage despite the standoff between them and the school.
The incident comes at a time when several schools across the country are grappling with cases of student unrest, raising alarm over discipline and general welfare in learning institutions.
This is the second incident where a school has been closed indefinitely over unrest in the region. On Wednesday last week, St. Patrick’s Iten High School in Elgeyo Marakwet County was closed indefinitely after students staged a violent protest, leading to the destruction of school property.
The unrest broke out as students reportedly opposed sitting this term’s examinations, prompting the administration to send all learners home as a precautionary measure.
Keiyo North Sub-County Director of Education, Alice Sitienei, confirmed the incident, stating that the students went on a rampage, damaging property within the school compound in protest against the scheduled exams.
Reports also indicate that the principal faced accusations from students and other stakeholders over an alleged failure to uphold academic performance standards, which they claimed had contributed to the school's poor results. However, this publication could not independently verify these allegations.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, Kaplong Girls High School in Bomet County was also closed indefinitely following a student protest over alleged inappropriate behavior by a male teacher.
The incident, which sparked tension within the school, led to an abrupt disruption of learning activities at the institution. The students reportedly staged a protest, demanding action in response to repeated cases of inappropriate behaviour by the male teacher.
