Another Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidate gave birth to bouncing twins in Likuyani Sub-county and named one of them after Education Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang’i.
She becomes the third candidate to deliver safely while sitting exams in Kakamega County and the second in Likuyani Sub County in a span of two weeks.
The young mother had barely finished 20 minutes in the examination room at Vinyenya Secondary school when she went into labour forcing invigilators and the school principal to make arrangements for her to be rushed to the nearby Mabusi health Centre.
“Her bundles of joy came in an interval of 30 minutes and we thank God because the delivery process was successful,” said the Sub-County Director of Education David Mwandihi.
He said the candidate was forced to sit her CRE paper 1 examinations from the hospital bed after the safe delivery.
According to him, she will have an easy time sitting for her next paper after four days break. “We expect her to take a rest waiting for her final paper but obviously her grades are likely to drop because of the interruption,” said Mr Mwandihi.
Her mother, Florence Wanyonyi said they decided to name one of her grandsons after Dr. Matiang’i because of the exemplary work the CS has done in curbing cheating in national examinations.
“It was a little way of saying thank you to the CS and we hope the girl will perform well despite the challenges she had to do through during examinations,” she told West Media, adding that the other baby will be called Enoch Kibunguchy.
Other two candidates, one from St Boniface Mbagara Secondary school in Lugari and another from St. Benedict Lugulu in Likuyani were forced to sit part of their examinations from their hospital beds after giving birth.
Mr. Mwandihi and his Lugari Sub-County counterpart Francis Shikanda underscored the need for students to concentrate on their studies to avert cases of early pregnancy that impact negatively on their overall performance in national examinations.
Elsewhere, KCSE examination invigilator was attacked by goons armed with crude weapons in Mugumu village, Lugari Sub County.
Derick Magui said the attackers accosted him at around 12am on Thursday and thoroughly beat him with blunt objects.
He is an invigilator at St Immaculate Heart Secondary school. “I raised the alarm together with my wife to attract neighbours and used an Iron rod to fight back,” he said.
Feeling threatened, the attackers took off even before neighbours could respond to his distress call. He was treated at Lumakanda hospital before recording a statement at a nearby police station.