- PS Omollo has offered to clear more than Sh600,000 in fee arrears for students at Kanyamfwa Secondary School in Homa Bay County.
- Form Four candidates accounting for over Sh400,000 of the debt have been urged to focus on KCSE preparations without fear of being sent home.
- The PS has decried the deplorable state of the school’s facilities and called for joint efforts to upgrade the institution.
Students at Kanyamfwa Secondary School in Rachuonyo North, Homa Bay County, are set to remain in class after Interior Principal Secretary Dr Raymond Omollo offered to settle more than Sh600,000 in outstanding school fees.
The PS pledged a resource mobilisation drive at the school, where he also committed to supporting projects aimed at transforming the institution’s facilities.
Form Four students account for more than Sh400,000 of the outstanding fees, while learners in lower classes and junior school have accumulated arrears of over Sh200,000.
Omollo said the fees should not stand in the way of the students’ education, particularly candidates preparing for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations.
“I have offered to clear the fee balances so that no child should be sent home. Let the children focus on their education,” Omollo said.
He urged the Form Four candidates to put the remaining weeks to good use and repay the efforts of their parents, teachers and the wider community by posting good results in the national examinations.
ALSO READ:
Stakeholders call for JSS autonomy and more funding in education Reform Bills
Omollo also took issue with the condition of the school’s facilities, admitting that the institution faces serious infrastructure shortcomings.
“The state of this school is, for sure, deplorable. But that does not take away what you have in your brain. It does not take away the resolve that you have, and it does not take away the confidence that your parents and guardians have in you,” he said.
He told the students that their circumstances should not determine how far they go in life, drawing from the experiences of leaders who studied in schools with limited resources.
“There are those of us on this podium who went through the grounds of this school. Some of us went to schools that are probably not any different from this school, but because we were dedicated, today we can stand here and give back, contribute and also offer mentorship,” he said.
The PS called for a united effort by the government, local leaders, parents and residents to breathe new life into the institution, which has served the community for decades.
ALSO READ: Are JSS teachers free to choose their trade union? What the constitution says
He said Kanyamfwa students should be given an environment that allows them to compete on an equal footing with learners from schools with better facilities.
PS Omollo further pointed to government efforts to expand access to education through the recruitment of more teachers and reforms to higher education funding.
By Lizzy Aluga
Get more stories from our website: Education News
To write to us or offer feedback, you can reach us at: editor@educationnews.co.ke
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
