NAIROBI, Kenya Jan 9 – Democratic Citizens Party Leader Rigathi Gachagua has called for national school placement to be based strictly on merit.
The former Deputy President urged a review of the quota system, saying devolution was meant to address marginalization and ensure equal opportunities.
“The issues I raised and I want to be very clear is that all children in Kenya deserve equal treatment. National schools are very critical because they have very developed infrastructure and they attract the best among our children. The issue that I raised and I would like to continue raising it is that there must be fairness in the placement of children in national schools.”
“I have not insisted and I cannot that children of a certain area must go to schools where those schools are domicile. No, what I’m saying is where the schools are domiciled children from that area who qualify to go to those schools must be given an opportunity. I have examples,” the ex-DP said.
Speaking in Nyeri County, Gachagua criticized the placement of top-performing students in distant schools, despite parents investing in local institutions, while students with lower marks secure national school slots.
“Parents have called me from Nyanza, Ria Girls, Kamusinga High School (Bungoma), Mukumu (Kakamega), Machakos School, Mlango School in Kitui, St. Charles Lwanga, Thika High School; where children from those areas who had applied to be considered to be admitted in those areas in those schools and attained the requisite marks were denied an opportunity,” he said.
The DCP leader has further criticized leaders from North Eastern Kenya for their continued lecturing of other leaders, instead of utilizing the development funds allocated through devolution to improve their own schools and infrastructure.
He has noted that despite receiving billions of shillings from the national government, tangible progress in development has yet to be observed in those regions.
Gachagua also reflected on the old quota system, where school principals would sit down with students and their parents to select suitable schools based on the students’ locations and needs.
He believes that this system provided a better understanding of school placement logistics and should be reconsidered to promote fairness.
