Show voter's card to get bursaries, MP Amisi tells parents

Residents of Saboti and Kwanza sub-counties in Trans Nzoia have been asked to produce voter's cards as a requirement for bursary eligibility.

Hundreds of parents flocked and queued at the Independent Electoral and Boundary Commission (IEBC) gazetted polling stations to apply for education bursaries.

To lock out 'outsiders' from benefiting from money meant to help the local needy students, the NG-CDF committees were instructed to dish out bursary forms to registered voters in the constituencies.

Many people interviewed lauded the system used to distribute bursaries.

"In the past, we have seen students from outside the constituency benefit from the bursary at our expense. We support this system since it locks out outsiders," said John Simiyu.

Saboti MP Caleb Amisi, while commissioning a multipurpose hall and a multipurpose hall and water project at Matisi Friends Secondary School, defended the system saying it is meant to prioritise the interest of local needy students.

"Money allocated to bursary is supposed to benefit poor students in the constituency, and it was the resolution by electorate that the beneficiaries have to hail from this constituency," he said.

He argued that in the past years, the bursary committees received over 19,000 applicants, some of them from neigbouring constituencies.

"We realised that we are handling a huge number of applicants and some are outside the constituency. We have streamlined the process of awarding the bursaries to ensure local children benefit," said Amisi.

The bursary distribution process that started last week has attracted 16,000 applicants so far.

Amisi said much attention has been directed to needy students.

In Kwanza, area MP Ferdinand Wanyonyi said the measures had been put in place to ensure deserving cases were awarded bursaries.