Protest after over 100 learners locked out of Mathare school in dispute over rent arrears

There were protests on Monday morning in Mathare, Nairobi after more than 100 pupils were locked out of their classes after a disagreement over rent arrears between the school’s management and the proprietors of the learning centre.

Parents and learners at Millennium Community Development School, a community-based learning centre, started by well-wishers and parents from the informal settlement were angered by the decision of the premises owners and officials from the Ministry of Education to close down the school.

Margaret Aluoko, the school’s director, said the institution has had challenges with rent arrears and was in talks with the proprietors of the premises before Ministry of Education officials summoned her to have it closed immediately.

"We have had challenges with payment of rent to have the learners accommodated in these premises which we turned into classrooms. Unfortunately, we have been ordered to close down the school and send all learners to public schools," Aluoko said.

She said the matter of rent disagreements does not belong to the Ministry of Education and should be left to her to handle it with the owners of the premises.

The school which admits learners from the Mathare slums has 150 learners. The learners pay a paltry Sh1,000 as tuition fee while other costs are catered for by well-wishers.

Appeal to government

The affected parents who spoke to The Eastleigh Voice asked the government not to close the school as public schools are few in Mathare and are located far from each other.

"The reason why we have these kinds of learning centres is because there are few public schools in the entire Mathare and this makes it difficult for all children from the slum to access learning," said John Kamau, a parent.

They threatened to break the locked gate to have their children access the school should the stalemate not be solved within a reasonable time.

Mathare Sub-County Education Officer Lucy Musyoki said although they do not have jurisdiction over rent disagreements, they have a mandate to ensure that all learners are in school per government policy.

"Our work is not to engage in rent disagreements but to ensure that all learners are in school learning. In case children are not able to be in the classroom to learn because of any reason, we ensure that they get enrolled in public schools around," Musyoki said.

She said her office is aware that the school’s management has not paid rent for up to eight months and has been locked in disagreement with the proprietors of the buildings.

She also revealed that the school is not registered with the Ministry of Education as required.