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{
    "id": 671017,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/671017/?format=api",
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    "content": "who are unable to pay school fees? How will you assess that the inability? What is inability in this case? I am aware that constituencies are offering bursaries. They might offer bursaries of an equal amount of Ksh5,000 to everybody. Does that mean that person who has been offered a bursary can pay school fees? It is not possible. Who will do this? In some cases, you will discover that, in fact, the inability is everybody. You will find schools where every parent is unable to pay school fees. So, what is the purpose of maintaining that data? Should we not be looking – I had suggested this and it used to happen – my governor, my late father and many other professors and people who studied in the 1960s went to school through a scholarship plan for students who did well. It is not a contradiction to have this category of persons who you say have performed very well being offered full scholarships. That is what should happen, not to maintain a databank. I even have one and it is not helping because the problem is not having the resources. I am glad that the Senate Majority Leader mentioned this. In future, this inability should not arise. They should not be looking at this as the way of the future. If the Senate Majority Leader says at some point, there will be free secondary education – I am glad the Senate Minority Leader has walked in – so that as a coalition, we can offer that as an alternative for our manifesto for election into Government, that, free secondary education should not be a mirage. We should not say at some point, we will do it. We should say, next year, 2018, you will start free secondary education. We can still maintain the category of good students and offer them scholarships like other people. That is why I said the maintenance of a databank will not help. Clause 12 states that every head of a public institution of basic education and training shall not later than 28th February of each year develop and submit to the County Education Board a list profiling the performance and conduct of learners in their institution, in cases where parents and guardians are unable to pay school levies and, therefore, more likely to drop out. Chances are that you would find that in some schools – I know many that this would be everybody. So, the idea should be that the amendment should give hope to the poor parents of this country that they will get education irrespective of their status. It concerns me that we concentrate on educating students - I was hoping that the Senate Majority Leader would be here to respond to this. Sen. Musila has been at the fore front since 2004 about the withholding of certificates. To date, certificates are still being withheld. It is illegal. I remember the Deputy President making a declaration that the money would be paid. The money has never been paid. Students are still waiting. So, it is a contradiction in terms to say that you will profile students who are unable to pay but you cannot give an undertaking that the certificates of persons who have completed education should not be withheld. I will propose an amendment to this Basic Education Act that it becomes a minimum fundamental principle that you cannot withhold a certificate by virtue of nonpayment of school fees in secondary schools. That is why I said the idea should be not what basic education is but what basic standard is. Basic standard in my submission is not to withhold certificates. The Majority Leader mentioned about discipline. It must be addressed. We must find a method in the Basic Education Act to tell the students who are burning schools that they are criminals because arson is a criminal offence. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate"
}