A student was burnt to death in a dormitory at Mbiuni High School, Machakos District, as the unrest in schools spread like bushfire across the country.

The boy was asleep when his colleagues went on the rampage and torched dormitories, classrooms and the food store using petrol bombs.

In the past 48 hours alone, disturbances were reported in at least 11 schools in five provinces. Property worth millions of shillings was destroyed in the orgy of violence.

And at least 30 students are being held by police in connection with the riots.

Schools where student protests were reported included Sheikh Mixed, Ngelani High, Kathiani and Mwala, all in Eastern Province, Misikhu Girls' High in Western, and Mwambonu in Coast Province.

Others are Kitany Secondary School in Rift Valley and Heni, Njorwa and Ichagaki secondary schools, all in Central Province.

In Mbiuni grief and gloom hung over the school yesterday as hundreds of parents and residents thronged the scene of the Sunday night destruction.

Broken glass and burning debris littered the compound as smoke billowed from burning buildings. Property destroyed was said to be worth over Sh3 million.

The students claimed they were protesting at poor living conditions, deplorable food and high-handedness by the school's administration.

The Machakos and Kangundo security teams and education officials visited the school to assess the damage and plan the next course of action.

Machakos police boss Charles Mathenge termed the boy's death unfortunate.

Machakos DC Osman Warfa condemned the rising indiscipline in schools and blamed drug abuse, poor management and lack of parental guidance for the unrest.

Kathiani High School was closed yesterday after students went on strike demanding the removal of the principal, Mr Joseph Kimani.

They smashed window panes at the school but were stopped from occasioning further damages by riot police.

Mwala Mixed Secondary School was also shut after the students extensively damaged buildings and reducing the food store to rubble.

Yesterday, seven MPs from Eastern Province demanded action from the Government over the rising cases of student unrest.

Led by Kangundo MP Moffat Maitha and his Masinga counterpart Benson Mbai, the MPs said parents were getting concerned over the way schools were being run.

Yesterday, Mathenge said at least 30 students being held by the police would be treated as criminals and would face the full force of law.

MPs Mutula Kilonzo and Gideon Ndambuki called on the government to urgently carry out thorough investigations to establish the cause of the school unrest that has affected at least eight schools in Eastern Province in the past few weeks

This has made some principals to contemplate closure of all the schools in the area to stave off the violence.

The MPs said the orgy of violence in Machakos and Makueni districts was deeply worrying and the government should move with speed to avert further loss of lives and destruction of property.

So far, students in various schools in two districts have destroyed school property worth over Sh20 million in the past four days.

Other schools so far shut include Tala, Sengani, Kisukioni and Kinyui while others are experiencing tension between students and the administration.

"Something must terribly be wrong and the government must get to the bottom of this problem, which threatens to bring down education in this area," said Mutula.

At Sheikh Mixed, rowdy students destroyed property worth millions.

The students smashed window panes and damaged the school's laboratory before police were called in.

In Ngelani High School, a laboratory, a food store and the deputy headmaster's office were reduced to ashes yesterday morning.

The school's headmistress, Ms Mary Mutua, said she was alerted by the watchman on the 1.00am fire that destroyed property worth millions of shillings.

Eastern Provincial deputy police boss Gerald Oluoch, however, said the cause of the fire had not been established though they suspected that the students were behind destruction.

In the Sheikh incident, students complained of Mock examinations, which they said they were not ready to do.

Reports said 18 students had so far been arrested at Mburugu and AIC Athi River Secondary Schools.

And Misikhu Girls High School in Bungoma District was closed indefinitely after students went on strike.

Trouble began at 8pm on Sunday when the students boycotted their super and evening preps to demand the removal of their principal, Sister Maureen Oyolo.

They smashed all glass windows at the school, vandalised the school canteen and destroyed other property all valued at over Sh2 million.

Police officers had a rough time trying to quell the riots after the girls, numbering 1,060, repulsed an earlier advance team of 10 Administration Police officers.

It took a reinforcement of security personnel from Webuye and Kimilili police stations more than six hours to bring calm to the school.

The students accused Sister Oyolo of "frequent transfers of our good teachers to other schools".

They claimed that the Principal had targeted eight teachers for transfers, adding that two of those affected had already left the institution.

The students also demanded the revocation of the transfer of their deputy head teacher, Mrs Bertha Wekesa, who had been posted to the neighbouring Sipala Secondary School.

District Education Officer Peris Abukuse chaired an impromptu meeting of the school's board of governors, which resolved to close down the institution.

Heni Secondary School in Nyandarua District was also closed down indefinitely after the students went on the rampage.

The students set ablaze several structures and smashed window panes before storming out of the school.

Nyandarua police boss Charles Ogola said the 95 students burnt a kitchen and a food store, as others scrambled for soft drinks at the school canteen.

The students then packed their belongings and left the school compound as the inferno reduced the building to ashes.

The students were allegedly incited by their Form Four colleagues, who were protesting sitting for the ongoing Mock exams.

Elsewhere, Njorwa Secondary School in Laikipia District is under a 24-hour police surveillance after students threatened to burn it down at the weekend.

Police officers from Kinamba station were deployed to guard the institution following reports the students were planning to set the school alight.

This could have been the third time for the school to go up in flames in a span of 18 months.

Mr Chege Mogote, the Knut Nyandarua branch executive secretary, blamed the rising cases of students unrest to drug abuse.

He said majority of students in the country were abusing hard drugs, including bhang and alcohol.

He also blamed parents and guardians who dished out hefty pocket money to their children, which they in turn used to buy drugs and other intoxicants.

In Mwambonu Secondary School in Mwatate Division of Coast Province, police in riot gear blocked some 300 rioting students from destroying property.

A Form Three student was arrested and 10 others suspended for allegedly inciting the strike.

The Taita Taveta police boss, Mr Ndegwa Waweru, said the student would be charged in court once investigations were complete.

Waweru said more students were being sought by police for allegedly trafficking in drugs which they sold to their colleagues.

District Education Officer David Ole Sadara said one student who had previously been admitted to five different schools was responsible for the aborted strike.

Elsewhere, students from Kitany Boys High School in Keiyo District went on the rampage and attempted to burn down the institution on Saturday.

The students disconnected power supply to the school and started burning toilets in the compound.

He said the incident started after some of the students removed fuses from meter boxes in the school, plunging it into darkness.

"They mobilised themselves and quickly lit a fire in the toilets. We however moved in fast and contained the situation before it could get worse," said deputy head teacher, Mr Alfred Munyeko.

Yesterday, the school administration kept the boys away from their classes, and asked them to discuss and present their grievances to the deputy headmaster in the evening.

Sources, however, said the students were dissatisfied with the acquisition of a new school bus on hire purchase. The bus was recently bought at a cost of Sh3.3 million, with a Sh1.3 million downpayment.

The students are said to be unhappy with the school's plan to have parents settle the balance yet harambees had been held several times over the past few years.

	Copyright © 2004 The East African Standard. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).