Frustration, chaos after night school reopening change

In a last-minute decision that has sparked uproar across the country, Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu announced that schools will now reopen on May 6 instead of April 29 following ongoing heavy rains in the country. 

Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/education/article/2001494079/school-reopening-postponed-to-may-6">Secretary General Collins< Oyuu called out the Education cabinet secretary for the late communication although he is of the opinion that the decision to keep schools closed is right.

“The decision is rightly done but the timing was poor. The CS could have announced these days before to avoid the chaos and confusion that has seen some students report to school,” Oyuu said in a phone interview.

However, the Oyuu has discouraged schools from turning away learners who have reported.

Willy Kuria, the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association(Kessha) chairman, said school heads will not send back home students who have already reported to school.

“Asking the learners to travel back home will be exposing them to further risk. It is upon individual school heads to plan on the student’s daily schedule for the one week,” Kuria said.

However, ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/national/article/2001494051/parents-want-school-re-opening-pushed-forward-over-flooding">he admits that the decision< has left some schools counting losses as they scratch their heads on what to do with the perishable supplies that they had acquired.

“There definitely are some losses here and there, more so on products that had been purchased for use such as milk, cabbage and bread and have a short shelf life,” Kuria said.

On the other hand, Meru County Woman Representative Elizabeth Karambu condemned the decision as untimely, highlighting the confusion it has caused, particularly for boarding school students who had already returned to their campuses.

Despite the backlash, some stakeholders, including Johnson Nzioka, chairman of the Kenya Primary School Heads Association (Kepsha), defended the postponement, citing safety concerns and logistical challenges posed by the heavy rains. 

“Transport is a big issue and it would have been ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001493947/education-ministry-to-assess-damage-to-schools-ahead-of-term-2-opening">disastrous to put learners< on transit with the heavy rains.This is a national disaster and everyone should be concerned,” he said. 

This comes even as parents called on the government to intervene for those who had already bought tickets from various public transport operators.

Silas Obuhatsa, the National Parents Association, said parents risk exploitation from unscrupulous operators who might refuse to refund parents or reschedule travel dates for the students.

Meanwhile, Kenya Railways has indicated that it would extend the lifeline of tickets purchased by students.