Head of Presidential Special Projects and Creative Economy Dennis Itumbi has dismissed claims that a play by Moi High School Mbiruri was banned over its content.
Speaking on Citizen TV on Wednesday night, Itumbi said the play did not make it to the national drama festival because it failed to qualify, not because it was blocked.
He explained that the play performed well at first, coming second at both sub-county and county level. However, it later dropped to position four at the regional level in Eastern region.
“This play was not banned. It was ranked number four,” he said, adding that the adjudication records are clear.
This was after allegations were raised by the former Senator for Kakamega, Cleophas Malala, that the play was withdrawn due to the contents.
However, Itumbi rejected the allegations, stating that even the one who brought it up did not have all the information about the play.
He went on to say that the writer of the script sought an opportunity to appeal so that the play would be part of the nationals. However, this was not granted.
As per his report, the judges did not find anything wrong with the message contained in the play. Rather, they highlighted areas where the play lacked, including the use of props and the ending of the play.
Furthermore, he said that the stories that the play had been banned were false. He said that the school only lost in the regional level.
He added that the school is still taking part in the national drama festivals in other categories like modern dance and choral verse.
At the same time, he said rules guiding drama festivals are not new. They were agreed on earlier and include limits on things like vulgar language, violence and political messaging in performances.
The debate over the play has been growing in recent days, with different views emerging on what really happened, but Itumbi maintains there was no ban.
