Happy ending to girl’s agony over missing KCPE examination results

From left, Education Principal Secretary Dr. Belio Kipsang, KNEC CEO Paul Wasanga, KNEC Chairman Prof. Kabiru Kinyanjui, Parliamentary Education Committee chair Sabina Chege and Education Cabinet Secretary Prof. Jacob Kaimenyi when the secretary released 2013 KCPE at Mitihani House on December 31, 2013. PHOTO | BILLY MUTAI | FILE 

In Summary

• Her index number — 23529163001 — appeared to have been assigned to someone else and the St Bakhita Junior Academy pupil was in anguish. Had she wasted eight years of her education? If she had not, where were the results.
• Ms Were pledged that Purity’s results would be sent to her school. Ms Mbuthia said she had received confirmation from Knec that the anomaly would be rectified.
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By Nation Correspondent
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When Purity Ogera Barongo sent an SMS to find out what she had scored in KCPE after results were released on December 31, she was shocked to find that the scores she got were for a candidate called Raphael Wanyonyi.

Not believing what she was seeing, she and her parents sent another SMS. And another. Six times. But all the time she got the same message.

Her index number — 23529163001 — appeared to have been assigned to someone else and the St Bakhita Junior Academy pupil was in anguish. Had she wasted eight years of her education? If she had not, where were the results.

Purity and her parents decided to wait for the results to be sent to her school in Kwanza, Trans Nzoia County. But when the results came, her name — and her scores — were missing from the list.“I feel so disappointed and feel like my eight years have gone to waste,” she said on Tuesday when the Nation team went to interview her at home in Taito area.

Her parents and her school raised a complaint with the Kwanza sub-county education office.

Ms Elizabeth Mbuthia, the director of St Bakhita, was worried that if the problem was not rectified, Purity would end up being admitted to a boys’ school.

She was not the only one in agony.

“I am very disturbed. Since the day the results were announced my daughter has been crying,” said Purity’s mother, Mrs Violet Ogera.

They had intended to travel to the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) headquarters in Nairobi but the education officers in Kwanza asked them to wait.

Now, their long wait is over. Thursday, Ms Fridah Were, the head of corporate affairs at Knec confirmed that indeed, the council had received the complaint, which had been resolved. She said the problem arose as a result of erroneous information given to the council by the school in March. The problem was corrected in November after the national examination had been done.

Ms Were pledged that Purity’s results would be sent to her school. Ms Mbuthia said she had received confirmation from Knec that the anomaly would be rectified.

Meanwhile, Kisumu county leaders were Thursday challenged to support the education of bright but needy students. Nyando MP Fred Outa said many qualified candidates failed to join national schools due to lack of fees.

He spoke during a ceremony to celebrate the exemplary performance of Daphne Akoth, who emerged as the joint top KCPE candidate nationally.

Daphne also got a four-year scholarship from the Fred Outa Foundation.