Concern as 13 girls drop out of school due to pregnancies

By Isaiah Gwengi and Mohammed Doyo

Siaya, Kenya: Thirteen girls are alleged to have dropped out of school due to pregnancies in Bondo constituency, Siaya County.

And Bondo Assistant Deputy County Commissioner Samson Diero Akatch said most schools along the beaches were affected by early pregnancies allegedly perpetuated by boda boda operators and fishermen.

Kanyibok Primary School head teacher Isaya Mawira told The Standard that his institution was the most affected.

“I can confirm from my records the six girls got pregnant last year.

Parental responsibility

“There are some families which are led by single mothers who are at the same time fishmongers. This means they have no time with their children, making them to school drop out of school and exposing them to early pregnancy,” Mawira said.

Samson Osanya, a member of the school’s management committee, said that apart from Kanyibok, seven girls had dropped out of other schools within Usenge sub-location due to pregnancies.

“We have accepted to carry the burden but the truth will finally come out one day,” said Mr Osanya.

Kanyibo’s management committee chairperson John Ogwela said there had been laxity on the part of parents in promoting their children’s education.

“We have started organising sensitisation meetings with the local community to enable them to appreciate the value of education,” he said. 

The administrator appealed to the public to volunteer information on those impregnating schoolgirls for legal action to be taken against them. He warned parents against neglecting their children, saying that any parent found covering up defilement cases would be arrested and charged.

Last month, the House committee on education found out that at least 140 schoolgirls fell pregnant in Mt Elgon Constituency last year.

The team was on a fact-finding mission on underage pregnancies in the region and other factors that  impede education of the girl child.

Led by Dr Susan Chebet, who is the the Woman Representative for Elgeyo/ Marakwet County, the committee toured the region in the wake of an exposé mid last year on rampant underage pregnancies.

Dr Chebet expressed shock at the high number of underage pregnancies in the region and regretted that nothing much had been done to mitigate the cases.

Meanwhile, a 15-year-old girl who was reported as missing four weeks ago in Nyeri has finally been found living with a man suspected to be her lover.

CID officers found her at Kiawara slums following an extensive search.

Explanation

He lover was arrested and taken to Nyeri Police Station pending further investigations.

The girl went missing after a quarrel with her parents.

Her father said the girl, who is a Form One student, had been suspended after she reported to Ndiani Secondary School in Mukurweini late from a mid-term break.

 “She reported to school late despite leaving home five hours earlier only to reach there 30 minutes late after the school’s 4pm official time. And after I interrogated her on the reason for the lateness, she decided to run away”, he explained

The girl, however, disputed her father’s explanation saying she decided to run away from home following weeks of conflicts.

“My parents make my life so stressful by constant questioning and monitoring of my daily life and I felt the only way to escape such a life was to run away from home and go live with a friend,” she said.