Schools unrest, fuel price hike add burden on battling parents

National Parents Association chairman Silas Obuhatsa. [File, Standard]

Parents could soon pay more for their children in school as a fresh wave of student unrest collides with rising fuel prices, piling more financial pressure on households already struggling with the high cost of living.

The unrest in several secondary schools during the opening weeks of the second term has left a trail of destruction in dormitories, classrooms and administrative blocks, forcing schools to spend millions of shillings on repairs and restoration.

This is even as institutions brace for increased operational costs triggered by the latest fuel price hike. Education stakeholders now warn that the combined impact of repairing damaged infrastructure and rising costs of transport, food supplies and utilities is likely to push schools to seek additional financial support from parents soon.

Schools with private transport systems are expected to feel the immediate effects of the fuel hike, with the cost of running school buses. At the same time, suppliers are anticipated to increase the prices of food items and other essential commodities.

Yesterday, Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) chairman Willy Kuria said school administrations would be forced to hold consultations with parent associations and boards of management to address the rising operational costs.

“Schools are already under pressure because of rising commodity prices and now the fuel increase will affect transport, suppliers and utilities. After consultations with school administrations and parents' associations, parents may have to absorb part of the additional costs occasioned by the fuel price hike,” Kuria said.

National Parents Association chairman Silas Obuhatsa called on the government to intervene and cushion parents against growing financial pressure facing schools following the wave of student unrest and the latest fuel price increase.

“The destruction witnessed in schools means institutions will require huge amounts of money for repairs, while fuel hikes are already increasing the cost of commodities, transport and other school utilities. The government must step in and cushion parents from additional financial burdens at a time when many families are already struggling with the high cost of living,” Obuhatsa said.

The unrest comes barely a month and a half after the reopening of the institutions, renewing concern over the cycle of strikes in the second term of the school calendar. In the latest wave, cases have been reported in schools across Nairobi, Makueni, Kiambu, Embu, Nakuru and Taita Taveta counties since April 28.

The incidents have disrupted learning, destroyed infrastructure worth millions of shillings, and further spread the incidents. The latest case of unrest was witnessed at Dr Aggrey Boys National School after a second fire incident in the institution in less than 10 days.

The fire occurred in one of the dormitories at a time when teachers were busy receiving students back to school following last week's inferno that destroyed part of the school. 

Last week, the school was closed, and about 2,000 students were sent home following a fire that razed a dormitory housing over 100 students. The school directed that each student must pay Sh4,500 for the repair of the dormitory. Yesterday, four students returned to school. 

“We do not know what is happening in the school, and security personnel must expand their scope of investigations outside,” said one parent.

A total of 12 public secondary schools, among them Kenyatta Boys National School, have so far been closed indefinitely and students sent home following fire incidents, and at least 33 students have been arraigned for arson.

Taita Taveta County Police Commander Jonathan Koech confirmed the latest fire incident.

At Upperhill School, students staged a protest on May 19, before administrators resolved to send learners home over the following cases of diarrhoea among learners.

The incident was reported by the school principal, Morris Okumu, who alerted police after the situation escalated within the school compound located about five kilometres east of Kibra Police Station.

Among the damaged areas were classrooms, store rooms, the kitchen, staff room, school canteen and several window panes, with the extent of destruction yet to be fully established.

Similarly, unrest hit Ambira Boys’ High School, forcing the school to be closed indefinitely on Tuesday, May 19, after students went on a rampage, destroying property worth millions of shillings.

The violent unrest, which began on Monday, May 18, 2026, at around 8 pm and escalated until Tuesday morning, May 19, 2026, left dormitories, the computer laboratory, computers, laboratory equipment and reagents, the principal’s office, the staffroom, the bursar’s office and kitchen vandalised and looted, prompting the administration to close the institution immediately.

The strike erupted shortly after evening preps. According to initial reports, a section of the students attacked a Form Three student.

State House Girls High School in Nairobi on May 12, where students reportedly protested over poor sanitation, water shortages and delayed syllabus coverage, with the incident briefly disrupting learning at the national school.

In Makueni, students at Kaumoni Boys High School in Kaiti allegedly set several administrative offices on fire during unrest that destroyed the principal’s office, deputy principal’s office, dean’s office, laboratory and staffroom in an inferno that reportedly caused losses running into millions of shillings.

The destruction added to a growing list of schools hit by fires this term, including Mirithu Girls Secondary School in Kiambu county, where a dormitory fire in April forced the temporary closure of the institution, and Dr Aggrey National School in Wundanyi, which also experienced a fire outbreak on April 30.

In Embu, students at Kangaru Boys Secondary School staged a strike in March, while Njoro Girls Senior School in Nakuru county was closed indefinitely earlier this year following unrest linked to the sudden death of a Form Four student.

The unrest pushed the Ministry of Education's Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok to convene an emergency virtual meeting with all public secondary school principals to seek solutions to the case of school unrest.

A section of parents interviewed following the incidents of unrest blamed the incidents on corporal punishment and harsh and brutal teachers, coupled with the frequent chasing away of students for lack of school fees, which has compounded the problem in the once high-performing school.

“Why is the school administration sending students home for lack of a white handkerchief, spoons and plates, among other small items?" one parent at Dr Aggrey Boys National School said. 

Elsewhere, Ingotse Boys High School in Navakholo, Kakamega County, has been closed indefinitely after the library and parts of the buildings were razed down.

Education officials closed the school as tension between learners and locals grew over the cause of the inferno. Kakamega County Director of Education Stephen Abere said students have been sent home to allow investigations into the cause of the fire and ensure the safety of students. 

"The school library caught fire and the cause is not yet known but investigations have commenced. The students were sent home until the situation is contained," said Abere.