According to the suspension letter dated 17 May 2018 the 16-year old boy in form two was sent home over allegations of cheating in exam, stealing colleague’s sh100, bullying fellow students and harassing teachers, allegations he denied.
"Since then it is now close to four months my son has spent at home yet the school administration kept taking us in circles without re-settling him back or giving us way forward on his case" the father said.
Baringo High is one of the secondary schools in the government elevated into national status in 2014.
They, with their son, were for the second time turned away after being called to face the school Board of Management (BoM) on Tuesday September 11.
However, the disciplinary panel according to the parents wanted the boy to admit every accusation imposed to him so he can be forgiven and allowed back to class. "But how can I accept things I did not do" he retorted.
After refusing to give in to the pressure, the disgruntled family was sent back home and told to wait for a call from the school principal anytime to inform them on the way forward.
Pissed off with the manner in which the matter is handled while their son remain locked out of school, the family from Uasin-Gishu county resorted seeking help from Childcare Legal Aid Clinic(CHICALAC)-an Eldoret-based Non-Governmental organization championing children rights .
However on 28 August 2018, CHICALAC Managing Director Joseph Sawe drafted a letter demanding an immediate investigation into the suspicious matter and copied to the Ministry of Education, Teachers Service Commission(TSC), County Commissioner and National Intelligence Service(NIS).
"Even if the child did a criminal act he should have either been handed over to the police or rather have him face punishment in school witnessed by the parents, than wasting his time and denying him his basic right to education" Sawe said.
The officer threatened to move the matter to court if nothing is done to reinstate the said student back to school.
He further stated in his letter that when the parents were called to school in December 2017, nothing concerning the boy's indiscipline was discussed apart from his academic performance.
"If his conduct was questionable then the school should have notified the parents earlier but at this point it seems some fabrications and witch-hunt were being cooked to suit some hidden intentions" the children rights officer said.
He also quoted part of the suspension letter branding the boy a bully after allegedly serving his table-mates less food in the dining hall one of the days in first term, January 2018, "yet it came to our attention that the criteria of serving meals on tables ended in 2017." He said.
Another serious allegation against the minor is that he has written to the school notifying his intention to dropout, but Sawe termed it a lie saying the young boy said he was forced and coached to do so.
"The humble-looking boy has since kept pleading to his parents that he wants to go back to school" Sawe said.
When the Star called the said teacher on Monday he really admitted he was the principal yet he wasn't. His phone went unanswered thrice and later switched off after the boy and his parents met the board on Tuesday.
However the school principal Owino said the extent of the issue has gone beyond the school administration.
“The allegations against the boy are becoming too much and now I have relinquished it to the school board to decide and give their verdict” he said.
He however urged the parents to be patient as decision are being made saying rushing to human rights and media cannot solve their boy’s case.
-Joseph Kangogo