Written by Protus Simiyu and Joseph Manyasa 2012-08-17 17:41:00 Read 1017 Times

Kenya National Union of Teachers KNUT Bungoma County branch has blamed the Minister for Education Mutula Kilonzo for impartiality concerning the banning of holiday tuition in the country.

The KNUT Secretary General in Bungoma County Kenneth Nganga said implementation of the directive is impartial saying private schools in Bungoma County are still conducting holiday tuition.

Nganga was addressing journalists in Bungoma town where he insisted that there must be an equal level playing ground for both private and public schools.

The secretary general regretted that pupils in public schools in Bungoma town were forcefully evacuated from classrooms by the police while the private schools are still on during this holiday season.

“Pupils of Bungoma DEB were chased from classrooms by the police yet it is in our knowledge that private schools are allowed to continue with holiday tuition, as a teacher trade union, we are saying that there are no private and public pupils, we need the same level playing ground,” Nganga asserted.

The trade unionist said the Minister directed that only candidates; class eight pupils and Form Four students to be allowed in school during holiday and that private school have not adhered to the minister’s directive especially primary section by allowing all pupils to remain in school.

Mr. Nganga said KNUT Bungoma County branch is behind the decision of the national office that if private schools should be allowed to conduct holiday tuition, then the same must be applied in public schools without any favoritism.

He reiterated that as a teacher union they are not against the directive of the government to ban holiday tuition but their concern is that the directive must be applied fairly to both private and public schools.

“The students and pupils at the end of the year will seat for the same exams, there is no private and public national exams, the exams are the same,” he said.

Butere teachers breach the educational minister’s directive

In Butere of Kakamega County, despite the minister sounding a strong warning to school heads not to conduct extra tuition to students and pupils, schools in Butere seem to have gone against his words as tuition is going on as usual in some schools within the district.

According to the survey done by West Fm in different parts of the district, learning is being carried out normally in a number of schools both primary and secondary. 

Butere primary school being at the centre of the town and just  some a hundred meters from  the educational office is one of the schools  where the exercise is going on where pupils from class four  to five are paying Sh 150 while those in class six to eight are paying Sh 250 for a period of two weeks and attended by seven TSC teachers while another school, Ebubala primary in Shianda sub-location is charging Sh 200 for classes 4 to 6 while those in class 7 and 8 are paying 250 shillings to keep them in school for a period of two weeks.

A number of pupils from the two schools were Friday send home to bring the cash while parents looked reluctant to give the money taking heed of the government instruction to burn the exercise.

Secondary schools were not left behind as two prominent schools within the town, Butere boys and Butere girls are carrying on the exercise where it was established from a source who sought anonymity that students at Butere boys are paying Sh 4000 for a period of two weeks.  

Butere girl’s school principal Mrs Dorah Okaalo said they are only having form fours and those who didn’t perfom well in the last terms exam   and they are due to start their tuitions come next week.

Other schools where the exercise is going on are Manyala and Emabole secondary schools within the district.

The rest of the schools within the district are to start their tuition next week as some of the heads say they not received any notice from the ministry stopping them from carrying the exercise.

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