NAIROBI: Ranking of schools and
candidates in national examinations will resume after Members of Parliament
(MPs) voted to bring back the system that had been banned by the Ministry of
Education. Wednesday, parliamentarians resolved that the Government, through
the ministry, should immediately revert to the ranking system for the Kenya
Certificate of Primary Education ( KCPE) and the Kenya Certificate of Secondary
Education ( KCSE) exams. But Education Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi, who
coincidentally had a session with the Senate Committee of Education,
immediately opposed the move. Prof Kaimenyi said by approving the motion, the
MPs had contradicted a report of the last Parliament whose recommendations
included a ban on ranking. "We must agree to disagree here. I did not just
wake up one morning and like a mad man decided that ranking should be banned.
We acted on authorities of many reports that had recommended the same," he
said. Referring to the report of the committee chaired by former Mosop MP David
Koech, Kaimenyi reminded Parliament that the decision was based on previous
reports. "It was your own report in the last Parliament where the
committee was looking at strikes that recommended the ban on ranking. You
adopted it. How come you now want to go against your own report?" he
asked. See also: Why new path to power is threat to progress in Kenya MPs
approved the motion sponsored by Kimilili lawmaker Chris Wamalwa that described
ranking as "long-held tradition in the sector both locally and
internationally". But the MPs' decision appeared to open a row between the
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary
Education Teachers (Kuppet). IMPEACH KAIMENYI Knut Secretary General Wilson
Sossion welcomed the MPs' decision, saying they should have gone further and
impeached Kaimenyi. "They have started in the wrong direction. They should
have started by impeaching the CS because they will not be voting to correct
his mess daily," said Sossion. But Kuppet disagreed, with its Secretary
General Akelo Misori saying the union would support Kaimenyi because ranking
has been hijacked by unscrupulous businessmen.
"MPs must know what to legislate. Ranking is a policy issue. Ranking is not useful to schools, in fact it does not enhance standards as had been said," said Misori. Kaimenyi insisted he would not bow to pressure to reverse the ban that took effect with the release of last year's KCPE and KCSE results. The hard-line position puts him in a collision course with the House that expects him to report after two months on action taken to implement its resolution. MPs are known to take drastic action against Government officials who defy House resolutions. House rules stipulate that the relevant CS under whose portfolio the implementation of such a resolution falls, should provide a report to the relevant committee within sixty days.
"MPs must know what to legislate. Ranking is a policy issue. Ranking is not useful to schools, in fact it does not enhance standards as had been said," said Misori. Kaimenyi insisted he would not bow to pressure to reverse the ban that took effect with the release of last year's KCPE and KCSE results. The hard-line position puts him in a collision course with the House that expects him to report after two months on action taken to implement its resolution. MPs are known to take drastic action against Government officials who defy House resolutions. House rules stipulate that the relevant CS under whose portfolio the implementation of such a resolution falls, should provide a report to the relevant committee within sixty days.
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