A father in Bungoma is calling for justice for his daughter, who was denied access to the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam because she has Down Syndrome.
The devastated man visited the school to find out why his daughter could not sit for her national exams.
He discovered the school gates locked, as his daughter had reported. When he asked the watchman, he learned the school administration had given strict instructions to deny her entry.
“When I got into the compound, the deputy principal kicked me out,” the father said.
“He told me students were about to start their exams. When I asked about my daughter, he didn’t want to hear anything and showed me the gate.”
Desperate for answers, the father visited the Sub-County director of education to report the issue.
The director asked for assessment documents from doctors about the daughter’s medical condition. He was instructed to bring his daughter to school on Monday, November 4, to meet the official again.
On Monday, the Sub-County director called to cancel the meeting and referred him to the county director of education.
The father’s hopes were dashed when the county director said it would be impossible for his daughter to sit her exams this year.
The girl was born with Down Syndrome, and the family discovered her condition when she was two years old. They chose not to place her in a school for people with disabilities because her condition was manageable.