The directive that schools should remain closed until further notice owing to flooding has elicited mixed reactions.
Speaking to Education News in his office yesterday, Busia KUPPET Executive Secretary Moffat Okisai said although the directive given to all school boards and County Education Boards was visionary, it should have been done prior to suspension of the opening of schools.
The teacher union official said the directive is most likely to see the school academic calendar getting disoriented, with the student-teacher contact hours greatly reduced.
“We had expected Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu to inform Kenyans about the number of learning institutions affected by the raging floodwaters in addition to mitigation measures,” he said.
Okisai further said in the long run, the ill-informed decisions will end up adversely affecting education, adding that there is a likelihood of half-baked students transiting and graduating without sufficient knowledge, intended skills and desirable attitudes.
“The actions of the Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu are geared towards compromising education and subjecting Kenyans to sufferings,” he said, adding that mitigation measures have to be devised as soon as possible.
The teacher union official further argued that the suspension of school opening date is opening prison gates to potential criminals who are out of school.
In Budalang’i Constituency, some learning institutions have not been affected by the flood waters. This has seen parents arguing that learning should go on as usual in the schools.
The schools include Sirimba, Namalo, Ruambwa, Esifugwe, and Budalang’i primary schools, and St Benedict’s High School, among others.
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By Gilbert Ochieng’
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