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{
    "id": 622541,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/622541/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 451,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Obure",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 118,
        "legal_name": "Christopher Mogere Obure",
        "slug": "christopher-obure"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me the opportunity. At the rise of the House yesterday, I had moved that the Kenya National Examinations Council (Amendment) (N0.2) Bill (Senate Bill No.14 of 2015) be read a Second Time. The principal object of this Bill is to amend the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) Act in order to provide for the establishment of an independent appeals tribunal. Provision of education to citizens of this country and the manner in which examinations are administered has a direct impact on the qualifications of public officers available to discharge the functions of the county governments, as envisaged and provided for under Part 2 of the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution. All county governments, therefore, must have a keen interest on the subject of provision of education and the way national examinations are administered. It has a strong relationship with the success of devolution and performance of devolved units, particularly in the area of service delivery. Article 43(1)(f) of the Constitution guarantees every Kenyan the right to education. It further envisages that the education provided will meet certain minimum quality standards. Examinations are, therefore, a means of ensuring quality education and assessing the readiness of students to move from one level of education to another. Therefore, the question of integrity of our national examinations system is important. Our examinations system must be sound and beyond reproach. We all have a duty as citizens to protect the integrity of our national examinations system. Section 10(2)(e) of the KNEC Act gives the Council power to withhold, nullify or cancel the results of a candidate and candidates suspected to have been involved in irregularities or malpractices. My problem is that this law gives KNEC absolute and unquestionable powers to withhold, cancel or nullify candidates’ examination results without giving any explanation whatsoever, therefore, leaving victims without recourse or option. From the results that were announced last month, a total of 2,709 candidates who sat the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) in 2015 had their results nullified because of being suspected of cheating. The 2,709 young Kenyans were consequently condemned and denied the opportunity to advance their studies further. They were also denied the opportunity to be heard. Most of these children are aged 14. In 2011, 8,000 KCPE candidates were affected because their results were cancelled. In 2014, about 3000 students did not get their KCSE results because of suspected cheating. This experience is encountered every year when results of The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes"
}