Teachers in exam cheating saga to be impeached

Education CS Julius Migos Ogamba has said the government has enhanced additional penalties for exam cheats.

Going forwarding, any teacher or principal now found guilty of exam misconduct or facilitating other exam malpractices would be locked out of public service jobs for good.

"We have drafted new penalties which are akin to impeachment. This is just a warning... Just be sure that you will never get a job any where in the public once the courts find you guilty," Mr Ogamba said.

He said no mobile phones, even among teachers would be allowed in exam centres as part of the broader measures aimed at ending cheating.

"We shall provide just one satellite phone which shall be used by the examination supervisors," added the CS.

He said some additional security features have since been added to the exam materials which would help curb cheating.

"There are more other features added which I may not say here, but we want to tell Kenyans that we are ready to secure the integrity of the exams," Mr Ogamba told journalists.

He said already the government officials have had talks with the teachers' unions so that there won't be bickering during exams.

The CS was speaking Tuesday at Siala Technical College in Rongo, Migori Country, where he led a tree planting exercise.

At least 3000 trees were planted during the exercise.

On the court ruling on the controversial university funding model, Mr Ogamba said they have gone back to challenge the ruling.

"We have instructed lawyers to challenge the court order stopping the model. We need clear interpretation, but this does not mean stopping what is already going on," he said.

He separately asked the media to give successful government programmess postive coverage.

“There is already much that has been done to right things which were deemed wrong. We have burnt the midnight oil on so many things… let's not shut out eyes to that,” he stated.

On tree planting, the education boss said both the government and private sector must partner to help increase the country's forest cover.

Already the Ministry of Education and its various agencies among them schools, has planted at least 30 million trees of the 35 million target this year 2024.

"We are hoping more other agencies will drive this exercise with all of us in individual capacities as Kenyans so that we reach the target the president had set," Mr Ogamba said.

Climate change, stated the CS, continues to remain a key global challenge that requires more robust efforts in addressing it.