School Reopening: Magoha Responds to Parents on School Fees Payment

Education CS George Magoha on Monday, September 21, assured parents that only tuition fees would be paid once schools re-opened in October 2020.Speaking after a meeting with education stake holders at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, Magoha stated that no student would be sent home for fees, adding that the constitution provided that primary education is free and compulsory.”For boarding schools, the tuition part is also free, and teachers are not animals, they are ready to listen to those parents and we should treat every case as it comes,” Magoha stated. Education CS George Magoha speaking at Mawego Technical Training Institute in Homabay County on September 18, 2020.Twitter Parents with children in private schools would however be required to pay school fees.”If you have no fees, come back to public school, we will take your child because the government has directed that we should have 100 per cent transition,” he advised.In addition, Magoha stated that 75 per cent of secondary schools were day schools, hence, they were also free.Magoha also asked teachers to report back to schools latest Monday, September 28, following a directive issued by Teachers Service Commission (TSC) CEO Nancy Macharia.”The teachers can come latest next week, but if you love your school and you live near there you can report starting from today.”Due to delocalisation, it is still fine if you arrive on the 28th as the last date,” he stated.Magoha’s remarks came a day after the Kenya Parents Association Chairman Nicholas Maiyo urged the government to review fee guidelines arguing that parents had depleted their savings.”Most Parents lost their jobs in March and May, and may not be able to raise the second term fees. The government should review fees guidelines. We are in very difficult times,” Maiyo stated.Some parents also feared that fee charges would be increased in public and private schools as parents would be required to add facemasks as well as hand sanitisers to their children’s budget. “The cost of taking the children back to school is too high. We need adequate preparation. It is not just about the fees. There are many other incidentals,” a parent had stated. Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha assesses Grade 3 learning at Joy Town Special School in Thika in September 2019File