Itierio Boys students burn seven dormitories and own items in protest

Police officers inspect a burnt dormitory at Itierio Boys High School in Kisii County yesterday. [PHOTO: DENISH OCHIENG/ STANDARD]

KISII: Students of Itierio Boys High School burnt seven dormitories, including their property, on Saturday night.

It is alleged that the students went on the rampage after they were denied a chance to watch the ongoing European Football tournament.

The students also raided the principal’s office, the school canteen as well as a laboratory at the neighbouring Itierio Girls school where they left a trail of destruction.

Following the arson attack, over 850 students were forced to spend the night in hiding, sending parents in panic.

Peter Omari, a parent, said he received a call from his son at around mid-night that the school had been burnt down.

“I tried to reach him but he said he was hiding in a thicket because senior students had chased them from the school compound,” he said.

RUBBISHED CLAIMS

He added: “These students should have sat down with their teachers and solved the issues they were raising. The cost of the damages is extremely high. It is unbelievable that our children can bring down structures that have taken years to put up.”

Omari also rubbished the students’ claim that the school had recently introduced rules that they deemed too tough.

The school’s management board was yesterday locked up in a meeting with security officials to discuss the aftermath and possible closure of the school.

School authorities said they were still assessing the damage but estimated it would run into hundreds of millions of shillings.

Although earlier reports indicated 15 students were injured in the fire, police and school authorities later confirmed all the students who were in the dormitories escaped unhurt.

Kisii County Commissioner Kula Hache, who led the county security team to the school, said they will carry out thorough investigations to determine the cause of the unrest.

“This is unfortunate and all students must be aware that every institution is guided by a set of rules. We will not bend rules because of some individuals. We have had several fire incidents in our schools in the recent past and it is common knowledge that most of these fires have been caused by students,” she said.

Kisii County Governor James Ongwae said the school is the third oldest in the county.

“One can understand a normal fire incident but not a situation where students go against the school rules and burn down seven dormitories plus their belongings. This is unacceptable,” said Governor Ongwae.

He added: “We will hold discussions with all stakeholders and ensure that normalcy returns within the shortest period.”

According to the police, the students used petrol sneaked into the school by unknown people to burn the dormitories.

The Standard spoke to some police officers on the ground who hinted that the students could have used petrol to burn the dormitories.

The petrol is said to have been bought by some outsider who got access to a group of students who had gone to a neighbouring school in Migori for sports activities.

The incident happened a few minutes past 10pm on Saturday night after the normal weekend entertainment programme that had lasted for three hours ended.

The students are said to have demanded to watch a football match  between Portugal and Croatia in the ongoing European Football Champions (Euro), which was to kick off at 10pm.

HAKI YETU

Chanting “haki yetu” (our rights), the students immediately went on the rampage, claiming they had been denied the opportunity to watch the match.

The school’s deputy Principal Apollo Omungu is said to have been against the idea of the students extending the entertainment time to watch the soccer match.

The principal, Andrew Otara, who had just arrived from a head teachers’ conference in Mombasa, said they had tried to help the students by enforcing the school rules.

During the meeting, President Uhuru Kenyatta told secondary school principals to foster good relations with students to end unrest.

Uhuru accused some principals of being rigid saying besides implementing school rules, they should also learn the character of students.

“If they say they want to do something, allow them about 30 minutes then ask them to return to the normal routine. Well, implement the rules but this will also help you resolve a big problem,” said Uhuru.

This is the eighth fire incident to occur in secondary schools in Kisii County in a span of four months.

Other schools that have also been affected include Nyamagwa Boys and Girls, Magena Secondary, Riokiondo, St Peters Suneka, Nyamagwa Mixed and Omebara Secondary.