I started watching this "ndlama & findeo" when JJ Kamotho [God rest his soul in peace] was Minister for Education in the 1980s!

The MoE is dishonest to the public. It pretends that there is a maximum limit that schools can charge, yet the truth is that there isn't!

This is what MoE circulars say: "The maximum fees is X, however, if you need to charge more, ask us for permission"!

So Boards of Management call a parents meeting, explain the escalation of prices and ear-marked projects. Parents approve new fees. Minutes of meeting are sent to MoE and voila, the higher fees are approved.

Come February, new form ones are admitted and their [new] parents get the fees note. they are in shock because, being new, the were not in last year's AGM where the fees were approved! [I guess this is the reason Alliance cunningly called the new parents to a meeting on 21 Feb to discuss fees!]

The new parents will make a lot of noise and the Minister will come out pretending to talk tough and issuing threats and warnings to "any head-teacher who doesn't follow the fees guidelines"

Notice the cunning selection of words: "fees guidelines". In other words, any who increased without approval!

Pupils report to school and the noise goes quiet once their parents realise that it is not possible to provide any semblance of quality education with the money that MoE prescribes!

We then wait until next year and the ndlama & findeo repeats!

I think secondary school fee remains one of the most thorny and burdening item on Kenyan families.There must be lots of bright kids who miss chances due to the high fees change by our top national schools and as it stands,they will remain a preserve of the rich.Matters are not helped by a clueless ministry of education.BTW,what happened to the recommendations the President received from the education task force?I thought one of the bright spots about it was to tax airtime as a way of making secondary education free.

Secondary schools are a class thing, its a feel good thing for parents and students and thus just like the iphones and designer labels - in kenya we have designer secondary schools followed by the fanatic followers of the same.

students in day secondary schools pay next to nothing in terms of fees, why we never see this is astounding - secondary education can easily be free and universally accessible if only we put aside our selfish desires.

This is a great point.

I noted in my travels that countries like Canada, UK, US etc where secondary school is free have very few boarding schools. Children mostly learn from home all through. The few boarding facilities are known and are largely elitist.

This obsession with boarding schools is what is killing our ability to provide quality free education. Yet a dormitory adds nothing but a bed and some relief for stressed parents.

Absence of war doesn't necessarily imply there is peace.