Kepsha Chairperson laid to rest in Mwala

The late Kenya Primary Schools Heads Association (Kepsha) chairperson Johnson Nzioka, who was laid to rest on Friday last week in Machakos County, has been hailed as a distinguished professional in the education sector who played a key role in the implementation of the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC).

Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang, who addressed mourners at Kasolongo village in Mwala, Machakos County, said the late Nzioka has left a mark in Kenya's education transition through his passionate involvement in driving the CBC agenda.

"We sincerely appreciate his immense contribution in the presidential working party in domiciling our junior schools in primary schools. I thank him even more because when everybody was worried about transition of Grade 8 to Grade 9, he was able to work with headteachers to ensure the learners were settled in primary schools," Dr Kipsang said.

The PS revealed prior to his (Nzioka's) death, Nzioka had agreed to bring together all chairpersons of school heads across the counties for a meeting with Education CS Julius Migos where further deliberations on implementing transition from Grade 9 to Grade 10 were to be made.

"I can affirm that Nzioka did his part as a teacher and when we lost him, we lost an opportunity as a country to tap into his contribution to supporting the sector," he said.

Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary General Collins Oyuu eulogized Nzioka as a leader who brought sanity and harmony between teachers and the Union.

"Nzioka brought cooperation between teachers and Knut and stopped the animosity that existed between headteachers and the giant union" Mr Oyuu said.

Governor Wavinya Ndeti termed Nzioka's death a blow to the teaching fraternity, saying teachers also play parental roles.

"A teacher is a parent. People might never appreciate what teachers do. They help in transforming lives of many people in the society and we celebrate them for what they do," said the governor.

She pledged to sink a water borehole at Kasolongo Primary School in honour of the late Nzioka.

Born in 1965 in Kasolongo village in Mwala, Nzioka joined Masii Boys High School in 1980 before joining Migori Teachers Training College where he completed his course in 1987.

He thereafter was awarded a Diploma in Education Management from the Kenya Education Management Institute before pursuing a Degree in Education in 2017.

He served as a member of Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), Member of National Examinations Appeals Tribunal and the national chairperson of KEPSHA.

He leaves behind a widow, Ruth Kyengo and two(2) children.