Schools to Reopen after Azimio Demonstrations in Nairobi and its surrounding areas are set to resume after reopening following the midterm break was delayed after Monday’s protests.
According to the Ministry of Education’s calendar, students were supposed to resume today. However, due to concerns raised by teachers and parents over the safety of learners in the areas with planned demonstrations, some schools decided to reschedule the reopening day.
Parents with children attending schools in Nairobi City expressed fear that learners might not have been able to find means of transport to their schools. The situation was the same for learners who reside in Nairobi but attend school in the countryside.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga called for demonstrations countrywide in order to put pressure on the government to reduce the cost of living and meet other demands.
In the past week, the Chairperson of the National Parents Association called for a meeting between the Head of State and opposition leader Raila Odinga in order to abate the crisis that could harm school-going children and many businesses.
The Chairperson of the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Omboko Milemba previously called on the government to postpone the reopening of schools. However, the government did not issue any announcement on the same. It is believed that allowing schools to postpone reopening could have been seen as a way of helping demonstrations.
Regardless, some schools went ahead to postpone the reopening dates due to concerns related to the demonstrations while other schools like State House Girls High School resumed early before the demonstrations.
The institution’s Chief Principal had informed parents of the rescheduling of reporting dates through text messages while the Senior Headteacher of Makini School, John Muriithi also did the same.
However, Nairobi school decided to stay put with students who are boarders attending school tomorrow and day scholars resuming on Tuesday.
The safety of learners is something that concerns parents and teachers especially considering the dozens of General Service Unit Police officers deployed in the city, especially at State House Road where many schools are located.
Students can now resume schools from tomorrow without any problems since the opposition only pledged to demonstrate on Mondays if their issues are not addressed.