This archive report was first published on 30 October 2019.
Registration Shocker for Some KCPE Candidates ¶
On Tuesday, several Standard Eight pupils in Kenya were shocked to learn that they had been registered to sit for their national exams as private candidates.
Parents from Mumias in Kakamega County are demanding answers after discovering that their children were registered as private candidates for the ongoing KCPE exams. The parents claim that the school, Mumias Muslim Primary School, wanted to boost its mean score.
According to Tawakal Burhan, a parent, the school registered 130 pupils as bona fide candidates and subjected the remaining 70, who were considered to be below average in their class performance, to register as private candidates.
"The school with about 200 pupils registered 130 as bona fide candidates and subjected the remaining 70, who were considered to be below average in their class performance to register as private candidates because they want to boost the school mean score in the national examinations," claimed Tawakal Burhan.
The 70 candidates were separated into two groups, with 50 sitting their exams at the centre for private candidates and the remaining 20 given to another private centre at Faith Academy in Ekero.
Parents of the affected pupils claim that they were not consulted by the school administration and were caught unawares.
"I only realised on Sunday that my daughter was a private candidate when she refused to eat and spent the nights crying," said Ms Halima Burhan, a parent.
When journalists visited the school on Monday morning, the head teacher, Omar Maloba, was out of the school but was reached on phone, saying he had taken his daughter to hospital.
On Tuesday, when journalists visited the school again, Mr Maloba directed them to Mumias West sub-county education officer, claiming some parents were using the media to frustrate him.
"I know people who are using you. Their intention is to have me sacked. What will you (media) gain when I lose my job?" he retorted at the journalists.
The sub-county education officer, Francis Shikanda, said he had received the complaints and had launched an investigation into the matter.
Similar incidents were reported in Kisumu and Migori counties, where parents were shocked to discover that their children had been registered to sit for the exams at different centres without their knowledge.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Dr Belio Kipsang confirmed the incident and said police officers had been dispatched to the scene to restore calmness.
"We are aware of the incident, but we have adequate confidence that the examinations will go on smoothly. Our officers at county level have already handled it," he said.
He warned schools against registering pupils in different centres.
Reporting by Shaban Makokha, Elizabeth Ojina, and Ian Byron
