By Roy Hezron
Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Vihiga branch Executive Secretary Sabala Inyeni has urged the government through Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) to decentralize marking centres to avoid teachers being exposed to Covid-19 in the zoned area.
Speaking to Education News recently on phone, Inyeni raised concerned that teachers might contract the virus for those who don’t have when they reach Nairobi which is among the counties in the zoned area and urged KNEC to decentralize the marking centres.
“The government has already zoned Nairobi among the five counties with high Covid-19 infections rates, so why expose teachers to a place with high infections? Why don’t they devolve marking centres?” paused Inyeni.
Inyeni urged that there are very many good schools in other parts of the country that can accommodate the national exercise, adding that majority of the teachers involved in the exercises are those whose age brackets are at high risk of getting the virus.
“Most of these teachers who go for these exercise, the likes of Chief Examiners and assistant chief examiners are not teachers below the age of 50 years, the age category we are being told is at higher risk. We would really wish that this process could be devolved,” said Inyeni.
The Vihiga Kuppet boss urge that through decentralization, travelling will be minimize since a region which has a higher number of teachers involved in the marking exercise can be allocated marking centres within the region.
Additionally, Inyeni also raised concern on how these teachers will be transported from the county headquarters to Nairobi for the exercise.
“We have been told that they are going to have gate passes from the County Commissioner’s office which is not a problem, but we have not been given clearly how the travel arrangement will be, are they going to be placed into one bus? You know travelling in a school bus is a one day event and most of them are not in good conditions,” added Inyeni.
The vaccination of those teachers who will travel from the county to Nairobi for the exercise has been scheduled on March 8, 2021 at Idavaga Muslim School in Mbale.
According to KNEC travelling and reporting dates, Chief Examiners and other top level assessors will report to the marking centres as from April 4, 2021 so as to coordinate the marking scheme.
Due to strict Covid-19 rules which have seen movement in five counties including Nairobi being blocked, the examiners will be transported to Nairobi in pools after receiving Special passes.
