Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei wants the disbursement of bursaries to be centralised in order to enhance equity and transparency
Cherargei noted that so many children from vulnerable families have not yet reported to various school due to lack of funds, yet we have county bursaries, National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) and bursary from the ministry of education.
Speaking at University of Eastern Africa, Baraton during a consultative meeting with stakeholders on the status of devolution in Nandi County, the senator said he plans to table a Bill seeking to harmonise bursaries to ensure free and fair process during the distribution of the money.
“We should agree that reforms regarding bursary distribution is now a priority so that we can achieve 100 percent transition. Our children have become beneficiary of charity. It has reached a point we must fundraise for them in order to report to school. That’s not acceptable,” he said.
Cherargei stated that most parents spend time looking for these bursaries in various offices without success, thus need to co-mingle all those bursaries to ensure deserving students get help.
The senator also supported the move by the education ministry to have parents of students in national schools pay fees through the e-Citizen platform
He argued that the one-stop transactions will help eliminate all indirect charges that have been illegally introduced by certain institutions, fight corruption, promote transparency and accountability
“The best way to fight corruption is to ensure all payments for government services are made through the e-Citizen portal for accountability and to track the revenue of the country,” he said
According to the Government, the Directorate of e-Citizen has set up a payment collection process that is convenient and transparent to ensure that principals will be able to access funds received for their schools promptly and in full.
To ensure a smooth roll out, the new payment system will be implemented in phases beginning with National schools and subsequent extending to Extra County and County schools.
By Linet Wafula
