School closed after head teacher moved

By Victor Nzuma

Machakos, Kenya: Katoloni Primary School in Machakos County was Tuesday closed indefinitely after parents withdrew their children following the transfer of the head teacher.

The angry parents marched to the county education offices in Machakos town accompanied by their children, where they demanded cancellation of the teacher’s transfer.

They vowed not to let their children return to the school until the teacher is reinstated.

Earlier, the parents had stormed area DC’s office before being referred to the education offices.

Machakos District Education Officer Richard Midamba condemned the parents’ action, saying the teacher’s transfer was performance-related.

“The head teacher had to be transferred due the poor performance the school has been recording in the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examination during the five years she has been at the school,’’ said Midamba, who also accused the head teacher of inciting the parents to protest.

The DEO said the school was the only one that attained a mean score of 200 in the KCPE examination in the district.