CThe cabbages dumped in the school farm (left) and a hospital ward (right)
Worried parents stormed a school in Kisii county on Sunday demanded answers from the Nyabururu Girls High School board of management after 18 students were reportedly taken ill for consuming contaminated food.
The administration is alleged to have secretly buried rotten cabbages following increased cases of suspected food poisoning among the students.
They accused the board of covering up the incident by dumping the rotten vegetables in the school farm at the expense of their children’s health.
Not even assurances from the Kisii County Director of Education Pius Ng’oma could calm the parents down as they insisted on being granted access to their children.
He stated that only 12 girls had been admitted at Nyangena Hospital with two discharged.
A student who spoke to the Nation stated that they had been denied a chance to speak to their parents raising even more questions over the matter.
“We have been suffering here for a long time now, the number of students who are sick is more than 200 but the management doesn’t want to disclose the information.
“It’s like we are in prison, the management is not ready to listen to our grievances,” the student told the publication.
The school’s principal Joyce Orioki denied the allegations urging, “Let me request the media to be sensitive and fair on this issue. If there is a problem there are relevant authorities to deal with it.”
A source told the Nation that the food poisoning cases could be linked to the consumption of cabbages which were brought in two lorries the previous week.