Juja MP George Koimburi now wants the government to fast-track the release of National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) funds it owes constituencies to cushion struggling parents who depend on the kitty and whose children are still stuck at home over their inability to pay school fees.
Koimburi decried that despite the financial constraints facing most parents who rely on bursaries to educate their children, the government has not disbursed the NG-CDF kitty since July last year, a situation that threatens the education of thousands of vulnerable students.
“We are urging the government to expedite the release of NG-CDF funds to enable us to facilitate the education of children from poor backgrounds. It is sad that some may fail to report to school due to lack of fees,” he said.
Speaking while issuing bursary forms at Nyacaba Secondary School where thousands of students turned up, Koimburi said that the money shall reflect once the government releases the funds.
He maintained that education is the only equalizer in society and is vital for development thus the need to be taken seriously.
“If we fail to educate our children, we will be failing as a nation. We want our learners to remain in class and continue with their studies uninterrupted,” he said.
The MP disclosed that the constituency will receive Ksh73 million worth of bursaries, an increment from the Ksh50 million they have been receiving previously.
On their part, parents called on the government to hasten the release of the funds stating that the delays will result in a school dropout crisis as school heads start sending learners home for school fees.
They cited unemployment, unfavourable business environment and diminishing sources of income as the major challenges they are facing.
By law, about 2.5 percent of the total revenue is supposed to be shared among constituencies, money that goes into educational programmes including infrastructural development, security enhancement, environmental protection, sports and talents development and an emergency fund.
Despite the delays, the President assured MPs that the National Treasury will release the funds before schools reopen.
By Kamau Njoroge
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