Hard truths. Bold Insights. Real talk.
Addressing the media on Friday, the CS said early findings show that the warning was communicated in advance but no effective response was taken by the school staff before the tragedy occurred.
Ogamba further revealed that there was prior warning before the incident, saying two teachers had been alerted to planned unrest by a section of Form Three students, but no preventive steps were taken before the arson incident occurred.
According to the school management, Utumishi Girls’ Academy has a total population of 815 girls. Out of these, 808 were present at the institution at the time of the tragedy, while seven were away for different reasons.
The examination council depends on a large workforce drawn mainly from the teaching profession to run national assessments. For the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exams, 22,247 security officers, 54,782 invigilators, 12,126 supervisors and 10,765 centre managers were deployed.
Applicants are required to visit the KUCCPS website and select the student portal under the portals section. Once on the platform, they should create an account by filling in the required details.
He cautioned that principals who fail to register eligible candidates for the 2026 examinations would face serious administrative and disciplinary action.
Thousands of contracted officers were engaged to manage last year’s three national assessments; the Kenya National Examinations Council administered Kenya Primary School Education Assessment, Kenya Junior School Education Assessment and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education.
The ministry explained that the delay is part of wider funding constraints currently influencing government operations. It said the concerns raised by those who supported the examinations process are justified and have been taken seriously.
The audit shows that errors in enrolment figures led to the removal of 547,637 learners from funding-eligible records. This represents a 4.7 per cent drop from the initial figures captured in Nemis and left over half a million learners listed as “unaccounted for” at the time the report was prepared.
The Ministry said it is providing support to affected families and schools as investigations into both accidents continue. Authorities are seeking to establish the exact circumstances under which the two crashes occurred.
Speaking at the 2026 Legislative Retreat in Naivasha, Ogamba told lawmakers that the system will help the country determine the true cost of educating a child, a figure that remains unclear due to multiple funding sources.
The CS acknowledged that while reports of forced uniform purchases exist, enforcement has been difficult because there is no hard evidence against the schools involved.