Students of a local secondary school in Kenya arrested their headteacher and stopped a suspected case of arson at the school.
The incidence which took place in Kiambu County happened on Thursday evening, where the headteacher was spotted heading to the dormitories carrying 20 liters of petrol, while the students were attending the evening studies.
It is not clear why the headteacher intended to burn down the school, and speculation is rife that there could be others doing the same thing. “He might be frustrated about his job. Managing social distancing in school is a hard thing. It is also painful for a teacher to see that students are just about to fail KCSE which is coming in a few weeks. He might also be an official with KNUT and he is now feeling the power leave the union. There could be many reasons.”
Following the arrest, Education CAS Zack Kinuthia has recommended the reintroduction of corporal punishment for teachers as it used to happen in the good old days. “We should allow the District Education Officer to slap a teacher if they do not behave. The County Commissioner should be free to cane teachers in the presence of students. This is the only way to restore dignity to the office of the teacher.”
