Isiolo legislators to support medical and education students

Isiolo Members of parliament will support students pursuing medical and education courses in various institutions in a bid to help address the shortages of local staff in health facilities and schools in the county.
Speaking while disbursing bursary cheques totaling to Sh 21 million from the Isiolo South Constituency Development Fund (CDF) kitty to secondary schools at Garba Tulla High School on Tuesday, the area MP Abdi Koropu said he was working with his Isiolo North counterpart Hassan Odha Hulufo to address the shortages.
“We have agreed with my Isiolo North colleague that one way of addressing the shortages in the teaching and medical professions is to train our own manpower. For all students pursuing teaching and medical careers, whether in universities or other colleges, CDF is paying their fees in full,” said Koropu.
The MP said shortages of teaching staff at many Schools in Isiolo is magnified by unfair distribution of teachers in the county, and employment of teachers from other counties who are at liberty to be transferred to their counties after five years.
“There are more teachers in the relatively urban areas than in rural areas, and the fact that many of our young men and women have not gone to teacher training colleges, the TSC employs teachers from other counties, who are at liberty to go back to their home counties after five years,” said Koropu.
He said close to 4000 students from the constituency will benefit from the CDF kitty during the 2017/2018 financial year, adding that Garba Tulla High school will take the lion’s share of the Kitty, while all form one students will receive either a full or partial scholarships.
The MP disclosed that Garba Tulla High school received Sh1, 280,000 while other schools that include Kinna, Kulamawe, Bulesa and Modagashe day secondary schools received amounts ranging from Sh 200,000 to 400.000.
Koropu, who is an alumnus of Garba Tulla High school, said they wish to take the institution back to its former glory. Isiolo senator Fatuma Dhulo and the Women Representative Rehema Jaldesa are also alumni of the school and are issuing full scholarship to form One students.
“We will continue with the same trend until the whole lot of the 35 form one students and subsequent classes complete their secondary education after four years and then analyze the results to find out whether school fees was the cause for the decline,” said the MP.
On Friday last week, the Isiolo North CDF disbursed bursary worth Sh 20 million to needy secondary school students from the constituency, at Isiolo Boys High school where the local MP Hassan Odha Hulufo said the regional leaders will stop at nothing to ensure children are in school and that education standards are improved.
By David Mutwiri