Beware of schemes to load additional levies, parents told

Education CS George Magoha escorting Teresia Muturi Muthoni to Moi Girls School, Nairobi where the girl was admitted to Form One. (Wilberforce Okwiri, Standard)

With Form One admission closed, focus is now shifting to the tricks principals and school boards will employ to load additional levies on parents.

The Ministry of Education allows schools to charge additional levies on parents as long as the monies have been deliberated on and passed in meetings through consensus.

It has now emerged that during such meetings, some principals mobilise board members and friendly parents to propose levies that are adopted during school annual general meetings (AGMs).

The levies range from construction of additional classes, laboratories, motivation fees for staff, school trips and travels to meals in some cases.

Interviews

During the meetings, some board members and friendly parents are strategically positioned with the sole duty of responding positively to the proposals through secondments and ratification of the additional levies.

The schemes largely target Form One parents who may not be aware of them.

The Kenya National Parents Association yesterday cautioned parents to be wary of the hidden plans by managements of schools, and asked them to reject any additional charges not approved through genuine consensus.

“We know these schemes and we want parents to fully participate in these meetings to ensure they only allow what is agreed through consensus. No additional levies shall be charged on parents because they have been outlawed,” said Nicholas Maiyo, the parents’ association chairman.

Interviews with parents who have students in national schools, extra county and county schools reveal that starting this week, they have been invited to attend orientation meetings.

“It is during such meetings that outlawed levies are passed and parents are asked to pay because they have been minuted,” said Maiyo.

A recent report by secondary school heads unearthed various vote heads catered for by the schools but not covered under the ministry’s capitation.

Consequently, the report by the heads under the Kenya Public Secondary Schools Assessment pitched for fee increment to cushion the schools.

The plea was, however, rejected by the ministry.

The report handed to Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha said deficit in school funding was an indication of the pressure school managements endure to ensure the system is running under increased enrollment.

The report cited costs such as leave allowance for non-teaching staff, medical allowance, commuter and overtime allowances, which schools pay yet they are not covered in capitation disbursements.

Also listed were the annual increment and implementation of government directives on minimum wages and payment of casual labourers and salaries for teachers contracted by school boards.

Having failed to convince the government to increase fees, Maiyo said schools could still be keen to seek alternative ways of advancing higher levies on parents.

In their report, secondary school heads said the 100 per cent transition campaign has stretched school resources yet the government does not provide funds for essential items.

The report says desks and chairs for the increased enrollment are not catered for in the annual disbursements. For instance, the report says, a set of desks and chairs costs Sh4,900 per student.

Headteachers also said making book covers and binding of the new government-supplied textbooks cost Sh60 each for the 11 course books, translating to Sh660 per student.

Textbook policy

With the new textbook policy, most subjects were not supplied with these materials, they said.

“The government should allocate Sh120 per student to cater for the teachers’ reference materials,” reads the report.

Headteachers said these additional levies should form part of the Sh4,792 tuition vote head per child.

Currently, that vote head caters for textbooks, exercise books, laboratory equipment and chemicals, reference materials, library materials, teaching and learning materials, chalk, computers and computer accessories, desks and chairs, grid board, school stationery and class tables and chairs.

Principals proposed an increment of this vote head to Sh5,642 per child per year.

They say in their report that that the money is inadequate, as most schools have expanded their curriculums to offer more examinable subjects.