𝐒𝐄𝐍. 𝐌𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐎 𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐒 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐄𝐍𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐋𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐊𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐘𝐀𝐆𝐀 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓𝐘

Senator Kamau Murango (Kirinyaga) has raised concerns over declining enrolment in day secondary schools and escalating incidents of insecurity in the County, calling for urgent interventions by the relevant national government agencies.

Sen. Murango called on the Standing Committee on Education to explain the factors contributing to declining learner numbers in day secondary schools across the County, the current enrolment trends and the status of affected institutions, including those at risk of closure. He cited Ichang’i Day Secondary School as an example of an institution facing challenges arising from dwindling enrolment.

The Senator noted that the expansion of day secondary education through the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) and the introduction of Free Day Secondary Education had significantly improved access to secondary schooling. However, declining student numbers in some schools were placing institutions under financial strain and threatening their sustainability.

He called for clarification on the effects of declining enrolment on school funding, staffing, utilisation of infrastructure and the overall sustainability of day secondary schools. He also called for details of measures being undertaken by the Ministry of Education and other relevant agencies to stabilise enrolment and support affected institutions across the country.

On security, Sen. Murango raised alarm over increasing cases of burglary, livestock theft, abductions, sexual assault, motorcycle theft, business break-ins and murder, particularly in Ndia Constituency and Mwea West Sub-County. He observed that the incidents had heightened fear among residents, threatened lives and livelihoods, and raised questions about the adequacy of security measures and law enforcement responses in the affected areas.

The Senator called on the Standing Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations to provide a breakdown of reported criminal incidents in Kirinyaga County over the past three years, disaggregated by sub-county and type of offence, with particular focus on Ndia Constituency and Mwea West Sub-County. He also called for an explanation of the factors contributing to the reported increase in insecurity.

Further, he called for details of measures taken by security agencies to investigate the incidents, apprehend and prosecute suspects, including the number of arrests made and cases successfully prosecuted. He also called for an update on immediate and long-term interventions to curb criminal activities, including enhanced police patrols, intelligence gathering, community policing and security preparedness ahead of the 2027 General Election.