The headteacher was detained at Rodi Police Station, Homa Bay. [James Omoro, Standard]
A primary school headteacher in Homa Bay has been arrested after he reportedly hired an underage girl as a house help thereby denying the minor a chance to attend school.
The nine-year-old is said to have dropped out of school in Migori County in May last year. She was in Standard Two. It was not immediately clear why the minor stopped going to school.
The minor is said to have been tasked with the responsibility of taking care of the head teachers’ one-year-old baby.
The headteacher, who lives in Rodi Kopany Township, is accused of making the girl stay in his house when she was supposed to be in school.
His arrest came after concern by neighbours who wondered why the girl was not going to school.
Some of the residents informed Homa Bay sub-county children’s officer Joseph Otieno about the presence of the minor in the teacher’s house.
Otieno said he liaised with the police from Rodi Police Station and stormed the house and arrested the headteacher.
Otieno said they found the girl carrying the head teacher’s baby. Upon interrogation, Otieno said, they realized the girl has not been going to school since May last year.
“It is true the headteacher has been exposing the girl to child labour. The girl is taking care of the baby in the residential house yet the headteacher’s children are going to school,” Otieno said.
The headteacher was detained at Rodi Police Station. “He must be taken to court for violating rights of a child,” Otieno said.
Both the teacher and the girl are residents of Migori County.
The officer said preliminary investigations had revealed the teacher lied to the parents of the girl that the minor would attend the school where he works and that he would accommodate the girl at his house.
“The girl told us that she left home on grounds she would be taken to school. But when she came to the teacher’s house, she was made a house help,” Otieno told The Standard.
He added: “The minor has been rescued by government officials. We have taken her to a child protection center before further action is taken.”
The officer told residents to respect the rights of children, arguing: “The society cannot have productive people in the future if children are not accorded their right to education.”
Monitor water pumps remotely via your phone
Tracking and monitoring motor vehicles is not new to Kenyans. Competition to install affordable tracking devices is fierce but essential for fleet managers who receive reports online and track vehicles from the comfort of their desk.
Source: The Standard Media Kenya