The devastating fire that killed 16 students and injured 79 others at Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, Nakuru County, was an act of arson.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba says the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) is currently holding and questioning eight students who are treated as persons of interest in the investigation.
“The investigation will ascertain their individual roles in the planning and execution of this heinous act,” CS Ogamba says. “Those found culpable will be charged in accordance with the provisions of the Penal Code and other relevant laws.”
Preliminary investigations, the Ministry says, have revealed that two teachers were informed of the planned unrest by a section of Form Three learners but they did not take appropriate action before the arson.
The Ministry is also accusing the school administration of not adhering to the safety requirements as stipulated in the School Safety Manual and the Basic Education Regulations.
“In particular, there was congestion in the dormitory and one exit door was locked, contrary to the prescribed safety requirements.”
Board of management dissolution
As a result, the Ministry has dissolved the Board of Management of Utumishi Girls Academy for failing to ensure compliance with the School Safety Manual and the Basic Education Regulations.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has since been apprised of these findings and is taking appropriate and immediate disciplinary action against the principal of the school for failing to ensure compliance with the School Safety Manual and the Basic Education Regulations.
Consequently, the teachers who failed to take action despite having been informed of the planned unrest will also be subjected to disciplinary proceedings.
“Investigations are ongoing to establish other aspects of negligence on the part of officers from the Ministry of Education and the Teachers Service Commission. Appropriate disciplinary and legal action will be taken against officers found to have been negligent in their duties. We shall provide further information in due course as investigations progress,” the Ministry adds.
All 808 learners accounted for…
Meanwhile, all 808 learners who were present at Utumishi Girls Academy when the devastating fire started have been accounted for.
CS Ogamba says the bodies of the 16 learners who lost their lives have since been transferred to Naivasha Sub-County Hospital mortuary for preservation and DNA identification.
Of the 79 injured, seven of the injured students are still undergoing treatment at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) while the rest have been treated and discharged.
