Heartbroken Endarasha Academy parents left in limbo as fire inquest stalls over missing DCI files
The inquest was recommended by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which advised that the case be handled through a public inquiry.
Parents of the 21 boys who died in last year’s dormitory fire at Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri were left frustrated on Thursday after the long-awaited public inquest into the tragedy failed to begin due to missing investigation documents.
The families had gathered at the Nyeri Law Courts, expecting the proceedings to commence, only to be told that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had not submitted the investigation file from the September 2024 fire.
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Through their lawyer, Raphael Okubo, the parents voiced their disappointment at being excluded from the process.
“The victims’ parents and families have not been informed of the proceedings and were unaware of them. Out of vigilance, we have come today to register our presence in court and formally request to be included in the proceedings, and to be supplied with all the documents and evidence that the ODPP and the state intend to rely on in the inquest. This will ensure that the participation of the parents and families is meaningful in the process, so that, in the end, justice can not only be done but also be seen to be done,” Okubo said.
Waiting for over a year
David Karani, a member of the Elimu Bora Working Group, also questioned the delay, noting that the families had already waited for over a year.
“So we’re wondering why, one year later, these parents are being subjected to an inquest, having given all the information and having spent a month in the school to be able to produce a conclusive report. For us, we’ll respect it because it is a constitutional process, but we will still have questions on why they could not do a conclusive report,” Karani said.
The inquest was recommended by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), which advised that the case be handled through a public inquiry.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen announced the decision during the Jukwaa la Usalama forum in Nyeri on August 26.
Constitutional petition
Last month, the parents—together with the Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Elimu Bora Working Group—filed a constitutional petition against the school proprietors, the National Education Board, the Nyeri County Director of Education, the Nyeri County Education Board, and the Education Cabinet Secretary.
The petition seeks accountability for the failure to protect the learners’ lives, which led to the tragic deaths.
The petitioners are also demanding that the court compel the seven respondents to release the investigation findings into the cause of the fire.
They argue that their right to human dignity, as guaranteed under Article 28 of the Constitution, continues to be violated by the respondents’ failure to disclose the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.
Okubo clarified that the upcoming public inquest will not affect the constitutional petition filed on September 23, 2025, and formally requested access to all documents and evidence that the ODPP and the state plan to present during the inquest.
The public inquest has now been rescheduled to November 20, before Magistrate Maryanne Gituma.
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