Lobby groups urge government to compel schools to stop detaining KCSE certificates

Civil Society organisations in the Nyanza region want the Ministry of Education to compel secondary school principals to release Form Four certificates withheld in schools to alleviate the affected youth from trauma.

They expressed concerns that thousands of youth in the region cannot pursue their future careers because their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) certificates have been detained in schools.

This is the resolution passed during this year’s annual conference on education convened by Elimu Yetu Coalition in collaboration with the Forum for African Women Educationalists Kenya (FAWEK) held in Homa Bay Town.

The conference that brought together education rights defenders from all six counties in the Nyanza region resolved that the Ministry of Education rescue the Form Four leavers.

The chairman of Homa Bay County Education Network Kennedy Oyier, the Executive Director of Community Initiative Action Group Kenya Chris Owala, and the Kenya Women Teachers Association Co-ordinator in Homa Bay Mercy Odhiambo, said thousands of Form Four leavers in Nyanza are psychologically tortured because their KCSE certificates were withheld in schools.

Oyier who read the resolutions said it is illegal for any secondary school head teacher to withhold a KCSE certificate.

He said the trend will ruin the lives of many youths if it is allowed to continue.

“There is an outcry in the Nyanza region that school head teachers withhold KCSE certificates but this is an illegality. It is going to ruin the lives of many bright students who should be pursuing opportunities in their lives,” Oyier said.

Owala attributed withholding the certificates to illegal levies that secondary school head teachers charge in schools. He argued that the illegal levies cause serious damage to students in their academic tenure.

“It is very sad that students from poor families are exposed to crude levies like development fees among others which finally lead to withholding of their KCSE certificates. Such youth can neither join any college nor get any job because their certificates have been withheld,” Owala said.

Owala told the Ministry of Education to order secondary school heads to release KCSE certificates to the former students.

“We have started a campaign to push the Ministry of Education to order schools to release the certificates. The Basic Education Act is very clear that no school should withhold a student’s certificate,” Owala said.

Ms Odhiambo said students should be given certificates as soon as possible to enable them to plan their future lives.

“Apart from fighting for the rights of teachers, we are advocating for the rights of learners too. Let learners who complete their exams be given their certificates to start pursuing opportunities,” Odhiambo said.

She said there should be equality in encouraging boys and girls to learn.

“When girls are given sanitary pads in schools, boys should be given boxers to enhance equality,” Odhiambo said.

The annual conference brought together education rights defenders from Homa Bay, Kisumu, Kisii, Siaya, Migori, and Nyamira counties.