NAIROBI, MARCH 4, 2016(CISA) – The Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) has cancelled the results of over 5000 students who sat for last year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE).
“This is not a laughing matter. This is a very serious situation, very sad. Bottom line is I want to look Kenyans in the face and tell them that as your Minister for Education, I apologise for these irregularities and I promise you I will do my very best, I will give it my all, to ensure that we don’t go this path again (sic),” Education Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang’i said as he released the 2015 KCSE examination results on Thursday March 3.
“Whereas in 2014, we had 2,975 candidates who were found to have been involved in examination irregularities and their results were cancelled, in 2015 we are cancelling the results of 5,101 candidates,” said Dr Matiang’i.
He however noted that the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) would not cancel the results of schools with cases of cheating “wholesale” due to the high number of reported cases.
Instead, he said the council in collaboration with the Ministry of Education would be setting up a secretariat to address the concerns of those whose results had been cancelled. Only Isiolo of all 47 counties had no cases of cheating whereas Nairobi, Makueni and Meru recorded the highest number of exam irregularities.
Given the worrying figures, the CS said President Uhuru Kenyatta had directed him and his Interior Cabinet Secretary counterpart Joseph Nkaissery to engage education stakeholders on the way forward.
In October last year, The Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops warned over reports of leakage of the 2015 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) Examination papers to students and teachers.
“It is our considerate view that exam leakage in this country has reached alarming levels, putting the credibility of our education system at stake,” said Bishop Maurice Makumba Muhatia, Chairman Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) Commission for Education and Religious Education.
“If not checked, this evil is likely to jeopardize the future of our young people, the credibility of professionalism and integrity of our country,” the bishop said during a press conference October 23 at Waumini house in Westlands, Nairobi.
