The uncertainty facing 400 Form Four candidates at Litein Boys High School in Kericho County has deepened after the High Court declined to compel the school principal to allow them back to class ahead of next week’s national exams.
The students, who were sent home following a strike that led to the school’s closure on September 21, are now in limbo as the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations begin in less than a week.
Parents have been directed to pay a total of Sh69.5 million for the reconstruction of damaged property before their children are readmitted. The matter was certified as urgent by Justice Joseph Sergon, who instructed that the case filed by Sheria Mtaani na Shadrack Wambui, a human rights lobby, be mentioned on October 23 for the allocation of a hearing date, two days after the national exams start.
The petition challenges the decision by the school’s administration requiring each parent to contribute Sh49,929.61 towards the repair costs.
When the case was placed before Justice Sergon on October 13, he directed lawyers Danstan Omari and Shadrack Wambui to serve the suit papers on the respondents, the Board of Management of Litein Boys High School and the Chief Principal within three days.
Other respondents expected to be served include the Kenya National Examination Council, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, Kericho County Director of Education, and the Teachers Service Commission. The judge further instructed all parties to file written submissions within seven days.
In court papers, Omari stated that the case was filed under Articles 22(2) and 258(1) of the Constitution to protect the students’ right to education. “The petitioner (Sheria Mtaani na Shadrack Wambui) institutes this suit pursuant to Articles 22 (2) and 258 (1) of the Constitution to vindicate the individual rights of students to education,” he said.
The lobby group dismissed the Sh69.5 million demand as unreasonable and unrealistic, arguing that it unfairly punishes students and parents who were not directly involved in the unrest.
The lawyers further told the court that this was the third time the school had faced similar incidents in recent years, “signalling persistent and unresolved welfare and governance issues within the school environment.”