Proud father gifts son cow for scoring A in KCSE

Patrick Yiapan and Susan Yiapan gift their son Ado Melita (centre) with a heifer for scoring A in the 2024 KCSE exams, in Ewor Enkitok village, Narok South county, on January 12, 2025. [George Sayagie, Standard]

A father has gifted his son with a cow for scoring A in the 2024 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams.

Patrick Yiapan gifted his son Ado Melita with a Sahiwal heifer.

This came after Melita’s uncle Lekishon Yiapan, who works with the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF), gifted him with a Merion sheep.

In Maasai culture, a ram is a gift reserved for congratulating heroes.

Melita sat for KCSE exams at Moi Forces Academy in Nairobi and scored A in 7 subjects to earn 83 points.

With the gift, he will no longer call his father by name but ‘entawuo,’ which translates to a heifer in Maa Language.

Yiapan, who works for an international pharmaceuticals company, lauded his son's exemplary performance during the gifting ceremony at his home in Ewor-Enkitok village, Narok North Sub County.

He expressed optimism that his son who aspires to be a software engineer, will excel in the career.

“I present you this gift my son, take this heifer as a way to say thank you for exemplary results. Thank you for attaining A plain in your KCSE,” he said.

“It's not the value of the gift that matters, it is the love we attach to it. I named you Ado (abbreviation of Adorable) when you were born, and you have lived to your name till you sat your final exams last year, I am proud of you,” said Yiapan.

His mother Susan said Melita has been hardworking and consistent from primary school to secondary school, and put God first.

Other students from humble background, like Stephen Ntayia who studied at Masikonde Day Secondary School defied the odds to score A plain of 82 points, becoming the best student in Narok county.

Ntayia who scored 395 marks in primary school was admitted to Kakamega School but was forced to join the mixed day school in Narok town because his parents could not afford to pay for the school fees.

The parents from Melili area, were forced to combine efforts with other parents to rent a single room for the boys to attend school in Majengo estate.

“I had to spend a lot of time revising. I slept as late as 11 pm and woke up as early as 3 pm, just to revise and ensure I got all the concepts that were taught in class. I also utilised my teachers well, who in turn helped me to achieve my dreams,” Ntayia said.

Due to the poverty back home, the student committed to remain in school during holidays to revise.

He aspires to pursue a degree in Aviation and lift his family from extreme poverty as both his parents are casual labourers who struggle to place food on the table.
Ntayia attributed his success to God.

“I heard the news from my school principal when my mother and I were in the shamba where we go for casual jobs. I was so excited to hear that I had passed the exams,” he said.
The boy’s father Edwin Ntayia said his second born son has done him proud as he performed beyond their expectation.

He said since his son joined Form One he has always scored A in exams, and is obedient and hardworking.

The school’s Principal Caroline Rono said that since the school sat for the first national examination in 2012, no student has ever scored A.

Ms Rono attributed the success to the commitment of the boy to his studies as he consulted the teachers regularly and was disciplined.

“Since our school is a day school, the boy would stay in school compound until past 9pm revising and came back as early as 4am to continue with his studies,” she said.

Njeru Lemayian scored A- in KCSE. Lemayian who lived in a rented house with Ntayia said God had rewarded their hard work.

He wants to study Medicine to help the sick in society and focus on innovations to find the cure for diseases.

The two students said they relied on relief food donated to the school as their parents could not afford to pay fees and meet other expenses.