Insecurity, floods worry parents as schools reopen

By ROSELYNE OBALA

KENYA: As schools re-open for second term on Monday, parents are a worried lot.

The tough economic situation notwithstanding, parents are concerned of insecurity, floods and high costs of school items.

The Standard established that many parents, even as they deep deeper into their pockets take their children back to school, they are concerned with rising insecurity and heavy rains.

Many expressed fears of upsurge of crime in various part of the country.

On Sunday, many school outfit and stationery shops in Nairobi remained closed save for a few like Bata. The shops, however, registered low turn out.

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Next week

The situation is a break from the past where at such a time, many parents would have thronged retail outlets in last minute rush to purchase shoes and other items for their children.

Varda Nita, a Standard One pupil at Advent Hill Primary School in Nairobi, was among those out shopping with her parent. The school she attends opens next week. However, her parent was keen to get her all the necessary items yesterday.

“Nita is going back to school next week. Am getting her ready to avoid last minute rush,” stated Peris Maina, Nita’s mother while purchasing her shoes.

Another parent, Zaccheus Madonde, was also buying shoes for her Standard Seven daughter Brina Goretti.

“I always prefer to get Goretti’s things ready earlier than this, but I have been quite busy, forcing me to do her shopping today (yesterday),” he noted.

Shoes are expensive

Mr Madonde, however, admitted that even though his daughter is in a private school, he is worried with the latest happenings in the education sector.

“Teachers are threatening to go on strike. This does not augur well even with children in private schools,” he stated. At another Bata shop along Muindi Mbingu Street, Mary Majanja, a student at Braeside High School, was also fitting new shoes.

Majanja’s mother noted that the shoes are expensive but not long lasting. “We are forced to buy shoes every term. This is very expensive to parents. The design is not also favourable to children, who complain that they are very heavy,” she said.

Supermarkets were yesterday jammed with shoppers flocking the outlets to buy stuff for their children.

Transport was also a problem for those going travelling upcountry as many buses were booked to capacity.

Long distance transport companies Easy Coach, Crown and Guardian were fully booked leaving many students and their parents stranded.

Ongoing rains that have killed and caused destruction in many parts of the country are also a headache to parents.

In Nyanza and Coast regions, the rains have rendered families’ homeless. This might hinder opening of many learning institutions.

Schools in affected areas might not open today since they are hosting displaced families.

Hundreds of people have been displaced in Homa Bay, Kilifi and Kisumu counties and are camping in schools. Also, about 100 families at Kisumu Ndogo slums in Kilifi town could be rendered homeless as their mud houses are almost getting submerged by floods.

Higher grounds

The situation is not any better in Rachuonyo in Homa Bay County and Kano Plains in Kisumu County.

Affected families have been forced to move to higher grounds while others have sought shelter in nearby churches and primary schools.

There are possibilities that schools offering temporary shelter to flood victims might not open today. Some schools have also been destroyed, while in others, pupils might not turn up since they have also been affected by floods.

In Tana River County, Kenya Red Cross Society has noted that more than 50,000 people have been displaced in the area. This will obviously paralyse learning in the region.

The new wave of crime in parts of Western Province is a major concern to many parents and their children learning in the region.

Even as schools resume, parents have sought assurance from the Government that their children will be safe.

Over 100 people, including children, have been attacked in the recent past in Busia and Bungoma counties, sending panic among residents.