COG Resists Jogoo House Move On ECDES
Updated on: Jan 12, 2024
The Council of Governors (COG) has resisted Jogoo Houses bid to take Early Child Development and Education (ECDEs) management from County governments by usurping constitutional functions vested in the devolved units.
The COG committee on education chaired by Kericho Governor, HE Eric Mutai, issued a statement warning COG had resolved to oppose recommendations by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform for national government to take away ECDE functions from County governments.
Currently, counties are collectively spending some Ksh 8 billion per year to operate some 3000 ECDEs centres with a total enrollment of some 2.3 million pupils across the country with a workforce of some 54,000 ECDE teachers.
Thousands of others are run by faith based groups and private investors.
County Government of Laikipia alone operates some 445 public ECDEs centers with an enrollment of some 27,000 pupils.
There are 120 private ECDEs in Laikipia County run by faith based groups and private investors in education especially in urban and peri-urban areas, but under the overall legal regulation of the County Government.
The COG said the move to overturn constructional mandate amounted to reversing and undermining devolved functions.
COG highlighted two recommendations by the Presidential taskforce report as having caused alarm in regards to their constitutional and legal import:
First, a proposal to amend the Basic Education Act to insert the County Commissioners to chair the County Education Boards (CEDs) as opposed the current scenario where the CS for Education appoints civilians from among stakeholders as salaried chairpersons of the CEDs;
Two, a proposal t consolidate management of all learning levels under a new proposed national government bureaucracy.
By inserting County Commissioners as chairpersons of County Education Boards whose designated secretaries are county directors of education would effectively put the CEBs under the thumb of national government.
These, the COG statement said, amounted to usurpation of provisions of Schedule Four of the constitution that vested ECDEs and Vocational Training Centres (TVCs) popularly known as Village Polytechnics under devolved units.
Failure to heed the COG demands for urgent consultations over the dispute, would result in governors and counties withdrawing their participation from all implementation efforts: until COG concerns and proposals are captured in the recommendations, the statement warned.
The national government allocates no funds to counties or running of ECDS as with other devolved functions.
The National government and Council of Governors have constantly disputed over attempts by the former to crawl back devolved functions, either by hostile reversal or by withholding budgetary allocations to devolved roles.
Many of the conflicts over delineation of functions have ended in the courts, and many landmark rulings have been made in favor of devolved units.
Laikipia Governor, H.E Joshua Irungu EGH, is on record faulting the National Government for undermining devolution by delegating the drive to distribute tree seedlings to village committees under the 15 billion trees afforestation program to regional and county commissioners.
This, says the governor, is a frontal attack on provisions of Schedule Four of the constitution that vested natural resources and water management and governance mandates to county governments.
The COG committee on education chaired by Kericho Governor, HE Eric Mutai, issued a statement warning COG had resolved to oppose recommendations by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform for national government to take away ECDE functions from County governments.
Currently, counties are collectively spending some Ksh 8 billion per year to operate some 3000 ECDEs centres with a total enrollment of some 2.3 million pupils across the country with a workforce of some 54,000 ECDE teachers.
Thousands of others are run by faith based groups and private investors.
County Government of Laikipia alone operates some 445 public ECDEs centers with an enrollment of some 27,000 pupils.
There are 120 private ECDEs in Laikipia County run by faith based groups and private investors in education especially in urban and peri-urban areas, but under the overall legal regulation of the County Government.
The COG said the move to overturn constructional mandate amounted to reversing and undermining devolved functions.
COG highlighted two recommendations by the Presidential taskforce report as having caused alarm in regards to their constitutional and legal import:
First, a proposal to amend the Basic Education Act to insert the County Commissioners to chair the County Education Boards (CEDs) as opposed the current scenario where the CS for Education appoints civilians from among stakeholders as salaried chairpersons of the CEDs;
Two, a proposal t consolidate management of all learning levels under a new proposed national government bureaucracy.
By inserting County Commissioners as chairpersons of County Education Boards whose designated secretaries are county directors of education would effectively put the CEBs under the thumb of national government.
These, the COG statement said, amounted to usurpation of provisions of Schedule Four of the constitution that vested ECDEs and Vocational Training Centres (TVCs) popularly known as Village Polytechnics under devolved units.
Failure to heed the COG demands for urgent consultations over the dispute, would result in governors and counties withdrawing their participation from all implementation efforts: until COG concerns and proposals are captured in the recommendations, the statement warned.
The national government allocates no funds to counties or running of ECDS as with other devolved functions.
The National government and Council of Governors have constantly disputed over attempts by the former to crawl back devolved functions, either by hostile reversal or by withholding budgetary allocations to devolved roles.
Many of the conflicts over delineation of functions have ended in the courts, and many landmark rulings have been made in favor of devolved units.
Laikipia Governor, H.E Joshua Irungu EGH, is on record faulting the National Government for undermining devolution by delegating the drive to distribute tree seedlings to village committees under the 15 billion trees afforestation program to regional and county commissioners.
This, says the governor, is a frontal attack on provisions of Schedule Four of the constitution that vested natural resources and water management and governance mandates to county governments.
