Schools in the contested Upper Eastern Mau Forest reopen

Three primary schools in the contested Upper Eastern Mau in Nakuru were among hundreds of schools that resumed learning on Monday across the country.

Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya disputed claims that the schools had been shut down completely.

Natembeya said that almost 80 per cent of the children reported back to the schools in Mariashoni and Nessuit areas.

He said that one of the schools that had been vandalised by the residents during the evictions in the mid-last year was refurbished and ready for learning.

“While fleeing the area, a section of the residents removed the roofs and timber walls of the school but they later rebuild it after the High Court halted the evictions,” he said.

Natembeya urged teachers and parents to ensure that children have their masks on at all times besides adhering to other measures.

In the densely populated Nakuru town, social distancing in most public schools remained a mirage as most classes in the primary section accommodate more than 65 learners.

Staggering the numbers into classes became difficult because the infrastructure was limited and neither do the institutions have vast fields where children can learn outdoor.

A spot check in several schools in Nakuru town showed that pupils were stuck in the same classes they were in before Covid-19 struck Kenya.

Schools with the highest populations such as Moi Primary School, St. Xavier, and Race Course Primary Schools had stuck posters at their gates warning parents seeking admission that there was no space.

At St. Xavior, the management limited access to the Primary section with large posters at the gates.

Despite the notices, there were long queues of parents who were seeking new admissions and they remained hopeful that they will get vacancies.

At Moi Primary, most of the parents seeking admission were turned away because the institution that has an Early Childhood Development Education section has more than 2500 pupils.

A frustrated parent, Wambui Kimani said the school management told her that it had a directive from the ministry not to accommodate more pupils due to congestion.

"Most of us have been told to come back after two weeks to see if there will be any slots occasioned by transfers," she said.

Assistant Director, Daniel Mwangi at Radiant Academy said the school management had put in measures to ensure all Covid-19 prevention measures were followed.

He added that learning would resume on Tuesday because the turn-out was almost 100 per cent.

Efforts to talk with the school management at the public schools were fruitless as most of them were held up in meetings most of the day.

Meanwhile, parents flocked supermarket, banking halls, and uniform shops in the last minute effort to buy school items or deposit school fees.

Long queues were experienced outside Shah Outfitters, Wool Shop, and Nakuru Uniform and Sportwear shops which deal in uniforms, sports gears, and sports items.