Officer loses KCSE certificates leaving students disenfranchised

A student at a Mandera school. Forty four students from Lafey Secondary School in Mandera who sat for their KCSE examinations in 2015 are yet to get their certificates after an education officer lost them PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The principal said the officer in Garissa handed over the certificates to another officer in Mandera who cannot explain the whereabouts of certificates.
  • Lafey Sub County Education Officer Ahmed Abdisalan confirmed the loss of certificates and said the matter is under police investigations.
  • According to the Education Officer, one Mohamed Kasi picked the certificates from Nairobi and handed them over to Mr Mohamed Hassan Daudi based in Mandera South Sub County Education offices.

Forty four candidates who sat for their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations in 2015 at Lafey Boys Secondary School are yet to get their certificates.

According to the school principal Mr Mohamed Ibrahim, the certificates were picked from Kenya National Examination Council (Knec) and the Ministry of Education by an educational officer based in Garissa County but never reached Lafey Boys.

“Available information at Knec and the Ministry of Education shows the certificates for 44 candidates were released to an officer I understand is in Garissa,” said Mr Ibrahim by phone.

The principal said the officer in Garissa handed over the certificates to another officer in Mandera who cannot explain the whereabouts of certificates.

LOST

“They were not lost in Nairobi or in Garissa but in Mandera after they were picked by our own officer who decided just not to deliver them to our school,” he said.

The principal added that he had written to all concerned offices within Mandera and in Nairobi but he is yet to receive a feedback.

“I realised in February that our 2015 candidates could not get their KCSE certificates,” he said.

Lafey Sub County Education Officer Ahmed Abdisalan confirmed the loss of certificates and said the matter is under police investigations.

“I reported the matter to Lafey and Mandera Police stations on May 22, and they are investigating the matter,” he said.

REPLACEMENT

According to the Education Officer, one Mohamed Kasi picked the certificates from Nairobi and handed them over to Mr Mohamed Hassan Daudi based in Mandera South Sub County Education offices.

“We are suspecting these certificates got lost in the hands of Mr Hassan at Elwak (Mandera South) but we are already working on replacing them even as police continue probing the matter,” said Mr Abdisalan.

Lafey MCA Abdullahi Siyad Adan appealed to the Ministry of Education and Knec to solve the issue to enable the youths join colleges.

“The loss of KCSE certificates has stalled lives of more than 40 youths in that area since they cannot join colleges or do anything requiring them to produce academic certificates,” he said.

The MCA demanded a disciplinary action against education officers who mishandled the certificates.

“We cannot have lazy officers tampering with young lives just like that," he said, adding that it was time the government took action against such officers.