Lead image for Learners engaged in Kisii-Narok clashes, administrators say .
More than 10 schools on the Kisii-Narok border have failed to fully reopen for the third term, with teachers and government officials reporting that some learners are on the battlefield armed with bows and arrows.
The low turnout comes as inter-communal clashes triggered by a bar brawl over a woman at Nyabitunwa centre enter the third week, with no ceasefire in sight despite several security meetings convened to broker peace.
Teachers in Kiango, Enoosaen and Nyabitunwa primary schools said attendance was below 30 per cent on Monday and Tuesday, with parents reluctant to release their children as armed youths engage in fighting across the volatile region.
“Some of our learners, especially those in junior school, have not reported. They are in the forefront of the battlefields with bows and arrows, and we are now fearing for their safety,” said Ruben Ongao, headteacher of Nyangeti DEB School.
With the term being the shortest in the academic year, and national examinations just around the corner, Mr Ongao said he was worried about how the schools would recover the lost learning time if the fighting between two local communities persists.
The Kiango-Enoosaen road that connects Kisii to Transmara remains accessible only under armed police escort. Boda boda operators have withdrawn services, shops remain closed, and villages have been deserted as families spend nights in the bushes for fear of attacks.
Several people are nursing arrow wounds in hospitals in Transmara and Kisii, while local administrators said others could be recovering from injuries at home.
Residents said youths armed with bows and arrows were seen moving in groups through the bushes on Tuesday despite the deployment of General Service Unit officers.