SCHOOLS: Welcome to the murky world of age cheats at Kenya secondary school games

Rugby action during national Term One games in Machakos. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

In recent years, the Kenya Secondary School games have faced an alarming rise in cases of age cheating, threatening the integrity of the country’s primary feeder system for national sports teams.

The school games have historically been a crucial stepping stone for budding athletes.

Stars like former Shujaa rugby player Billy Odhiambo (Maseno School), Harambee Stars and Gor Mahia striker Benson Omalla (Kisumu Day), and women’s 800m World Champion Mary Moraa (Mogonga P.A.G) are some of the top stars who have honed their skills in these competitions.

However, the chances of discovering the next generation of talents like Moraa and Omalla are dwindling as age cheating becomes more rampant.

This year, endless cases of age cheating have surfaced during the ongoing Term Two school games, resulting in several teams being disqualified at different stages.

In Nyanza, Onjiko High School football team was shown the door after Katolo appealed during the Nyando Sub County games.

Interestingly, Katolo, who reached the Kisumu County finals through the appeal, were also disqualified for fielding ineligible players in their 2-1 win over Kisumu Day in the semifinals.

Kisumu Day proceeded to play in the final, which they won 2-0 against Agai.

At the Nyanza regional level, Riokindo were disqualified in volleyball for fielding ineligible players, while Sameta were also disqualified in lawn tennis after it was found that they had enrolled a university student.

Currently, four cases including Nyakach Girls and national netball champions Oyugi Ogango, Lwak Girls and Nyakach Girls in football, Agoro Sare, Matutu and Koderobara in football and Maseno School and Sawagongo in basketball are going on.

Nyanza Region Secondary School Sports Association Vice Chair Ngala Mbuor urged schools to give bona fide students the chance to play. Mbuor said it has become difficult to expose the culprits who forge near perfect documents and if another school doesn’t complain, it goes unnoticed.

“All documents are original. It makes us wonder where these teachers get such documents from, when an appeal is submitted. Let all schools give these students a chance to play,” said Mbuor.

Former national girls football champions Itigo Girls High School from Nandi County and Kabarnet Boys High School were disqualification and subsequently banned from the games for two years. Both schools were found guilty of fielding ineligible players during the Rift Valley Secondary School games held in Bomet.

Rift Valley Secondary School Games Association Vice Chairman Sammy Githungu said investigations revealed that Itigo Girls and Kabarnet Boys violated the rules by allowing non-students to compete.

“An investigation following a complaint by St Joseph’s Boys High School confirmed that Kabarnet had ineligible players during the opening preliminary match at Silibwet Sports Ground,” Githungu said. In the case of Itigo Girls, the school was caught altering players’ documents, a practice that is strictly prohibited. Despite their 3-0 victory over Moi Girls in the quarter-finals, Itigo were disqualified after the investigation revealed the use of ineligible players.

A similar fate also faced former national and East Africa champions Wiyeta Girls from Trans Nzoia, who were edged out and replaced by St Joseph Girls High school.

It has been the same case at the Coast Region, where several schools faced heavy fines and bans for fielding non-students.

The Coast Secondary Schools Sports Association Chairperson Zuhura Hussein reiterated the zero-tolerance policy, warning that principals and teachers involved in such malpractices would be dealt with severely.

Mukasa Amboka, the 2018 SOYA secondary schools coach of the year from Kwale County, stressed the need for stricter measures to eradicate age cheating.

He suggested that the Ministry of Education should conduct random vetting exercises at schools before teams travel for competitions.

"Vetting should include biometric identification at the nearest Huduma Centre, as many of these mercenaries have national ID cards, making it easy to verify their true identities and ages," Amboka said.

The government's significant investment in nurturing talent through sports has been misused by some school administrators and coaches, who falsify students' documents to win awards.

This malpractice not only undermines the spirit of fair competition but also discourages genuine students and their coaches who spend years building competitive teams.

The Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) has a rigorous appeal process requiring a fee of Sh5,000 and submission of evidence within 30 minutes after a match.

However, schools often hesitate to appeal due to the risk of a Sh20,000 fine if the appeal is dismissed, as well as fear of retribution from well-connected principals or political figures.

To combat this growing problem, the KSSSA plans to increase surveillance during future games and implement stringent measures to ensure only eligible students compete.

"Any school found violating the rules will face severe penalties, including bans. We want competitions to be fair and conducted by genuine students," Githungu stated.

The rise in age cheating cases in Kenya Secondary School games poses a significant threat to the country's sports talent development.

While the government's investment in sports is commendable, it must be matched with rigorous enforcement of rules and regulations to ensure fair play.

By addressing this issue head-on, Kenya can continue to produce world-class athletes and maintain the integrity of its school sports competitions.