'Absentee' PS Julius Bitok on MPs' radar over education crisis

Basic Education PS Julius Bitok has come under intense scrutiny from lawmakers, placing him at the centre of a growing storm over accountability, leadership and management of the education sector.

In less than a month, the PS has faced sharp criticism from Members of Parliament over his conduct and execution of duties at the Ministry of Education, raising concerns about his stewardship of the critical docket.

His latest clash with legislators emerged on Thursday after he failed to appear before the National Assembly of Kenya Committee on Education to defend budget proposals, prompting outrage from MPs who accused him of undermining Parliament’s oversight role.

Committee chair Julius Melly (Tinderet) criticised what he described as a pattern of absenteeism and failure by the PS to respond adequately to key issues affecting the sector.

“This committee will not tolerate contempt for Parliament or casual handling of matters that affect every school in this country. If he continues to ignore this House, we will summon him, and we will not hesitate to place his conduct before Parliament for action,” Melly said.

The committee threatened to issue a formal summons and warned that failure to comply could lead to censure on the floor of the House.

Melly said the Clerk had formally invited all relevant Principal Secretaries, clearly indicating the date, venue and agenda following the tabling of the Budget Policy Statement on February 11.

While other ministry officials sought to reschedule their appearances through proper channels, the PS failed to honour the session without what MPs termed a satisfactory explanation.

However, Bitok later appeared before the committee on Thursday evening and apologised for missing the earlier session, attributing his absence to a communication breakdown.

“Allow me to register my apology to the committee for turning up late; there was a miscommunication, and I take responsibility for it. I have no intention to disrespect this committee or ignore summons whatsoever,” he said.

The committee directed him to reappear on February 24 alongside his team to respond to pending issues.

Lawmakers say his absence has stalled deliberations on urgent matters affecting schools, including overcrowding, transition challenges, delayed capitation disbursement, lack of insurance for learners and the overall state of school management.

Thursday’s confrontation follows an earlier public attack by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, who questioned Bitok’s competence and awareness of the realities facing schools.

Speaking during a National Assembly Members’ Retreat in Naivasha on January 28, Ichung’wah described the PS as “the most clueless PS in the Ministry of Education”, accusing him of failing to visit schools and understand challenges on the ground.

He cited disparities in teacher distribution, questioning why some schools remain understaffed while others have excess teachers despite the presence of education officials.

“Get out of your offices in Nairobi, go to the ground and deal with the problems there,” he urged education officials, calling for stronger engagement with challenges in the sector.

Bitok assumed office in May 2025 following a reshuffle that saw former Education PS Belio Kipsang move to the State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services.

During his tenure at the immigration department, Bitok earned praise for reforms, particularly clearing a major backlog in passport applications and improving service delivery.

However, similar recognition has yet to follow him into the education sector, where his leadership has increasingly come under scrutiny despite the defence of his record.

The former teacher maintains that he has made progress, including releasing capitation funds to schools before reopening and overseeing a near-100 per cent transition of learners from junior to senior secondary school.

The PS criticism comes after undertones in the Ministry of Education that he is overriding his mandate

In July 2025, MPs at the Education Committee had again complained that the Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, Basic Education PS Julius Bitok and University Education PS Beatrice Inyangala all seemed to be pulling in different directions. 

Luanda MP Dick Maungu warned that PSs must remember they serve under a CS and not the other way around.

 “We cannot have PSs that are acting as if they are bigger than CSs. The PS (Julius Bitok) should have been here. Where is your PS?” Maungu posed to Ogamba during the July 31 session. 

However, CS Ogamba explained that the Committee invite had only been addressed to him, and as such, the PS was not obligated to attend. 

This was despite the CS being accompanied by dozens of other top ministry officials and agency heads. 

Ogamba further explained that Prof. Bitok was attending a performance appraisal meeting, the deadline for which fell on the same day.

The absence raised eyebrows among lawmakers, who questioned the apparent disjointedness in the ministry’s leadership. 

MPs expressed concern that Principal Secretaries are increasingly acting with utonomy often overshadowing the Cabinet Secretary.

On Thursday, the Luanda MP further hit out at Bitok again, claiming that he had failed to provide a report on ghost schools and learners to the committee despite a request for the same last year.