Education CS Fred Matiang'i [PHOTO/nation.co.ke]
The Ministry of Education is planning to set up a team that will investigate the utilisation of Free Primary Education (FPE) and Day Secondary Education monies as handled by schools since inception.
According to Education CS Fred Matiang’i, a multi-sectoral team is being set up to cross-check how the funds have been utilised by schools.
Matiang'i said that the National Government had pumped in Sh300 billion to finance both the free primary and secondary education and revealed that that Kenya is seventh among countries which spend the largest portion of their Gross Domestic Product to finance education.
He said that there were suspicions of gross mismanagement of funds, something he says he would rather resign than preside over.
“I would rather not be Cabinet Secretary for Education instead of presiding over theft of resources,” he said.
The CS said this on Friday at Mary Hill Girls during the Prize Giving Day.
He argued that the monies being set aside towards the programme were enough to ensure provision of high quality education at an affordable cost but blamed the lack of integrity among those through whose hands it passes.