School Heads to Face Demotion for Ignoring Government Directives on Fees
From next week, school heads in Kenya who continue to burden parents with illegal school fees despite government directives will be demoted and their deputies will be given the responsibilities to run the institutions.
Basic Education PS Belio Kipsang warned school heads, saying the government will deal with those who go rogue, and ensure that they don’t handle resources if found culpable.
Kipsang spoke before the National Assembly Education Committee on Friday, where he was pressed to answer questions on why some school heads had continued to ignore the ministry’s directives and circulars.
The MPs observed that heads have always defied the directives, not only on junior secondary school fees but also on high school and primary school levies.
It emerged that school heads have taken advantage of a weak link between coordination of responsibilities between the teacher’s employer and the ministry to lay the burden on parents.
Even though all children and school property are under the strict management of the Ministry, only the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) can take disciplinary action against any administrators.
According to Kipsang, enough communication on illegal levies has been made, with constant reminders cautioning heads against burdening parents, and he noted that the time for the government to act had come.
The Ministry officials will no longer send reminders or give notice to school heads on school fees or no illegal extra levies, and the government will engage in a multi-agency approach to deal with the mess.
MPs questioned why children who were in the same school last year in grade 6 are now required to fork out thousands of shillings within the same school context.
Melly said some schools have gone ahead to issue school fees invoices to learners, forcing the majority to stay away from schools. Malava MP Malulu Injendi asked the committee to issue an ultimatum to the government to ensure the culprits are brought to book.
Melly wondered why the teachers’ employer and the ministry cannot come together for the interest of the learners, noting that there seems to be a conflict of interest between the ministry and the TSC that teachers are taking advantage of to this extent.
In conclusion, the government has taken a stand to ensure that parents in Kenya are not overburdened with illegal school fees. The government has warned school heads who go rogue, saying they will be demoted, and their deputies will take over the running of the institutions.
This measure is aimed at ensuring that the directives from the Ministry of Education are followed to the letter. There has been a weak link between the coordination of responsibilities between the teacher’s employer and the Ministry, which school heads have taken advantage of to burden parents with illegal levies.
The MPs observed that the heads have always defied the directives not only on the junior secondary school but also on high school and primary school levies. The government has also warned that those school heads who push them to act will be dealt with decisively.
The government will engage in a multi-agency approach to deal with the mess.
School Heads to Face Demotion for Ignoring Government Directives on Fees