Sossion blames school fires on substandard structures

Former Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General Wilson Sossion. [Kelvin Karani, Standard]

As unrest continues in schools across the country, former Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General Wilson Sossion has linked recent fires to the poor quality of boarding school buildings.

In an interview on Spice FM, on Sunday, September 16, Sossion said the collapse of the education sector is due to a lack of quality assurance and standards. 
He cited the recent fire at Endarasha School, which resulted in several pupil deaths.

"You know what is happening if private schools are getting a leeway to put up substandard structures and violate regulations, mainly to make business using our children that indeed is immoral, is unacceptable. It is not educational at all. It's unpatriotic," said Sossion.

He questioned the standards used to authorise Endarasha School’s operations.

 "What is our policy about enforcement of regulations and compliance of minimum standards by private schools in Kenya? Who gave the licence and the permit for the school to operate without meeting the minimum standards? Why?”

 “Look at the dormitory. It's made of timber. Partitions are made of timber. The beds are made of timber, and the doors are locked from outside at night and it is congested," he added.

Sossion also claimed that the school fires are deliberately set by students to express dissatisfaction. He attributed the fires primarily to overcrowded conditions in schools.

“When the Jubilee administration directed 100 per cent transition to secondary school without proper guidelines, we should have executed it through clear professional policies, guided by quality assurance and inspection reports of schools' preparedness in terms of infrastructure and boarding,” noted Sossion.

He called on investigative agencies to hold the school proprietor and the Ministry of Education accountable for the Endarasha fire.

Sossion further noted that a lack of accountability for school capitation funds has damaged the sector.

Dagoretti North MP Beatrice Elachi agreed, saying that education guidelines need revision to prevent young children from being placed in boarding schools.

She pointed out that some parents use boarding schools as a means to manage their children while attending to other matters.