By Gilbert Ochieng
Budalang’i MP Raphael Wanjala has said that his National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) Committee will not allocate funds to facilitate the repair of dormitories or classrooms gutted down by indiscipline students in Budalangi constituency.
Speaking to Education News in his constituency a few days back – the legislator who appeared irritated by the actions of a section of students from St. Benedict Budalangi High School who burned down a dormitory for no apparent reason – Wanjala said that the parents of the students involved in the senseless act will meet the cost of repairing the damaged facilities whether they like it or not.
The MP said such actions by unruly students will not be tolerated, adding that they must be punished for participating in the activity so as to serve as a warning to others who might be tempted to burn dormitories at their respective learning institutions.
“I am taking this opportunity to tell the parents of the students who participated in the burning of the dormitory at St. Benedict Budalangi High School that they must meet the cost of repairing the dormitory that their children had burned down because Budalangi NG-CDF committee will not allocate any amount of money for repairing the said facility or facilities as we have no money to waste,” said the lawmaker.
The ten students involved in the activity were arrested by police officers pending further investigations as the law takes its course.
Meanwhile, scores of parents from Bunyala Sub-county in Busia County have expressed concerns over what they term as extortion by primary school heads whom they allege are charging sh200 per term for paying teachers employed by the Board of Management.
The parents who spoke to Education News on condition of anonymity wondered why the said school heads are demanding the amount from them to remunerate the teachers yet the national government through Education CS George Magoha had announced the allocation of sh17.7billion on the 8th October 2021 to facilitate the smooth running of schools.
Out of the said amount, sh15.5 billion had been set aside for secondary schools whereas sh2.2billion had been earmarked for primary schools.
However, efforts to get comments from Bunyala Sub County Director of Education George Owuoche failed as he had gone to attend a board meeting at a school in the area.
