Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has reassured parents, teachers, and students at Laromoru Primary School in Baringo South that learning will not stop, even after the school was partially demolished a few months ago.
While speaking in Parliament on Wednesday, January 28, after the Kenya Forest Service allegedly demolished the school, Ogamba said he had talked to the forestry director and agreed that the school would be allowed to operate where it is.
“On the demolished primary school, I raised the matter with my colleague, and we agreed the school will continue right there,” Ogamba told the MPs.
He added that the community had already set up temporary structures to enable the school to operate as normal and that the government would come in to assist the school.
“I know you’ve done your best to keep learning going, and we will come in to assist because we agreed there should be no more demolitions,” he said.
Baringo South MP Charles Kamuren informed the house that the school was established two years ago as a way of promoting peace in the region, which was once marred by insecurity and banditry.
The residents claim that the officers stormed the school earlier this year and destroyed the semi-permanent structures, claiming that the school was built on forest land.
The situation was escalated when the local leaders tried to access the land to rebuild the structures, but they were prevented from entering the land by the police.
The residents claim that the school is legally recognized, with both a Ministry of Education code and a Teachers Service Commission (TSC) code. The residents also claim that the school reopened after the peace talks restored peace in the region.
After the demolition of the classrooms, the children were forced to learn under the trees, which exposed them to the harsh weather.
The residents are claiming that the demolition of the classrooms is likely to undermine the peace talks that were held in the region. The residents are claiming that the children’s education has helped hold the community together.
Ogamba’s words have brought a sense of relief to the worried parents and teachers, but they are waiting for the actual implementation of the words by rebuilding the classrooms for the children.