Calist Mwatela

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 681 to 690 of 702.

• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg to reply. (a) There was no massive countrywide leakage of the 2007 Kenya Certification of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations. However, I can confirm that there was an increase in the number of examination irregularities. In order for this answer to be understood, I would like to explain what "an examination leakage" is and what "an examination irregularity" is. An examination leakage is where an examination paper is public knowledge before the examination is taken. When there is such a breach, then the paper is cancelled, withdrawn and replaced with a different one. Mr. Speaker, Sir, ... view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am only trying to explain so that this is understood. The Ministry cannot cancel every examination which is interfered with by people sharing information through Short Message Service (SMS). What the Ministry is concerned about is to ensure that each case is treated on its own merit. (b) From what I have explained in part "a" of my answer, the Minister appointed a team of experts to examine all the Kenya National Examinations Council operations and propose the necessary changes which will include addressing the issue of increased examination irregularities and also taking preventive measures in ... view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, I have just explained, but I will do so, again. The process of handling examinations goes through a number of stages. For example, there are centres where these examination papers are stored, usually referred to as "armoury". Last year, for the KCSE examinations, there were 596 such centres. The examination papers are stored there for about two weeks before the actual taking of the examinations. It is very possible that somebody can get access to a particular aspect of the information that is contained in the examinations, and share it with another--- view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, may I explain this? Information on the examinations can be shared. What happens usually is that the KNEC has a way of detecting such shared information and penalising the individuals concerned, particularly the candidates. However, I have just said that we have put a committee in place which will study all the processes the KNEC follows, with the intention of ensuring that there is no more compromise in the examination process. view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. Yes, the Ministry is working closely with the other East African States in trying to create a system that is good for all of us. But may I also inform this House that the same problems we have here of increased irregularities are also in Uganda and Tanzania. So, it is a shared problem and we would like to fight it together. view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, the issue of fake results was a subject of a Ministerial Statement in this House. It was already addressed by the Minister and I consider it a different Question from this one. view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: First, Mr. Speaker, Sir, may I say that there was no paper that was found in possession of candidates or any other person which tallied with the paper that was set by the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC). That is what would have amounted to a leakage. There was a paper, indeed, which was found in the possession of somebody in Nakuru being photocopied and somebody alerted the police. When this paper was compared to the paper that was set by the KNEC, it was totally different! Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Ministry takes the matter of examinations very seriously and ... view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, I share the concerns of the hon. Member, and very seriously so. We need to ensure that we do not damage the image of our examination system. That is why I said earlier on that we have put in place a committee which is going to examine all the processes to ensure that we seal all loopholes and bring back the good image of the old days of our examinations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir. view
• 6 May 2008 in National Assembly: Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would like that report to be in this House as soon as yesterday, but it is a process. We have to look at the whole system and get ways of sealing loopholes, as I have said earlier. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I would say that, ideally, in the next two months, we should have a report of that committee. view
• 24 Apr 2008 in National Assembly: Bw. Naibu Spika, nakushukuru kwa kunipa fursa hii ili nichangie Hoja hii. Kwanza ningependa kumpongeza Waziri, mhe. Oparanya kwa kuwasilisha Hoja hii Bungeni kwa wakati unaofaa ili wananchi walioko mashambani waanze kushughulikiwa kupitia Hazina ya Maendeleo katika Mawakilisho (CDF). Ningependa kumweleza Waziri kwamba tunahitaji marekebisho zaidi katika sheria inayosimamia Hazina hii. Kwa mfano, sheria inasema kuwa, kiwango kinachoweza kutumika katika shughuli za usimamizi ni asilimia tatu ya pesa zote zilizotengewa sehemu ya uwakilishi Bungeni. Kiasi cha pesa kinachoweza kutumika kuwalipa wanakamati katika vikao vyao pamoja na wafanyakazi na matumizi yote katika sehemu ya uwakilshi bungeni ambayo imepata Kshs40 milioni, ni ... view