Not to discredit anyone who went to Pangani Girls, but a lot of questions run through my mind right now. From the stories I had yesterday, I do not think I would want my daughter to go to this school, as good as it is. I will pay for a private school for my girl.
I visited my brother's wife and she was claiming how tired she was, Monday had been hell for her as she had taken her daughter back to school after her 'suspension' for the fourth time in 2 months. Every suspension is not less than a week, and the girl has only been in school for two weeks in the last 2 months, the rest she has been suspended, staying at home, poring over books, watching telly, eating and sleeping. Her 'sin', she lied to her matron and the matron reported her to the head teacher who told her to pack and leave the premises.
Apparently, in Pangani, what you do during the holidays does not stay at home when you resume your classes, it follows you to the day you do your last paper and bid goodbye to the school. I'll try to narrate in brief what happened.
My niece reported back to class at the beginning of September. She decided to go to her best friend's dom to catch up on what they both did during the holidays. I think the excitement was too much she lost track of time. This happened after preps. When the students were making noise in the dorms, an alert was sent out as the head teacher had to leave her house to go see what the commotion was all about. She checked around was assured by the matron that all was well. By this time, the matron already knew that the girl was missing from her dorm. When the girl came back she gave a cock and bull story of how she was looking for her bucket. Of course you cannot look for a bucket for one and a half hours. She thought the matron bought her story so she slept and woke up as usual on the second day. Life was back to normal for her. The day ended well and she went to sleep and woke up on day three. She got called from the class to go face the disciplinary committee. The matron had mentioned to the head teacher what had transpired three days back and she was called to go do some explaining. Of course being the cheeky girl that she was, she went over the bucket story again. She got questioned and she insisted, the bucket story stays till she dies.
What does the headteacher do? Sends her home to go think of everything she did over the holidays and come and tell the disciplinary committee.
What caused all these? Her best friend had been called and she told the panel what they had discussed. Their boyfriends, the places the visited, who they met, when and where, what they did, what they wore, basically, EVERYTHING. So they wanted her to just confirm what they had been told, she refused. Girl gets home and parents want to know what happened. Same story sticks. The parents wonder why a girl can be sent home because of a bucket story. Luckily, one of the girls aunties is a teacher at the school. So she calls the sister and explains to her everything and tells them to ask the girl to tell them the truth. This time round she does, or so they think. After the suspension week ends, they take the girl to school. Same panel. She tells them what they had discussed and all, the nitty grittys. Is that all? Yes. No there is still something you are not telling us.
Now what? Both parents have taken a day off to take the girl back to school. They too are employed just like the teachers. Guess what, the girl is sent back home with the parents, again. WTF???? Thi is the short for Wed, Thur and Fri, in case you are wondering. If they thought this was over, they gatta get back to the drawing board again. The issue? The girls had a sleep over at their step mother, and they went to Carnivore. Yes that's it. And that's all the girl did not mention to the panel. Her best friend had, and since she omited that part, she starts another week as suspended, until the day she will say the truth. Now, the parents do not know this, and they cannot believe that in one of the sleep overs, they under 17 girls had been let out at 10pm to go to Carni on their own. These are two 16 years old girls and two 15 years old girls. In Carnivore. Alone. One of the girls is the step mother's daughter. She's damn lucky she schools in Machakos.
Anyways, the girl has to wait for a week before she goes back to school, yet again. The mother calls the step mom and questions her. She denies it all. But its because the girls said that they had gone with one of their aunties who at this point is unreachable on phone. The step mom 'promises' to investigate and get back to them. They must have sneaked out when she went to bed as she normally goes to bed at 2100hrs. Well enough. I believe you. This is before the parents had been told the truth. So they ask the girl how they went and she claimed that they went with the other older girl who's in campus. But who gave them the authority to go to Carnivore and what time did they go and come back? She says they went at 10 and were back by midnight. Two hours is not bad at all but these are my kids.
The beauty of all is that the sister to this girl is in form one at the same school. So next victim, the sister, an innocent 14 years old girl. Well, call her from class and explain her escapades over the holidays. In the meantime, the sister is at home, waiting for her probation to end before she is called back to go through the same harrowing experience infront of the disciplinary commitee.
Being the innocent girl that she is, she spills ALL the beans. But I wonder how teachers in such a national school can be so petty. The beans weren't juicy after all. They must have been so disappointed. The Carni trip started at 10pm after step mom called a cab for them. They left Carni at 0600hrs. When the mom found out and called the step mom, she is yet to pick a call from them or respond the any texts sent to her. The 'hubby' is likewise dumbfounded as he had protected 'mama mdogo', that she cannot do such a thing. Thanks to the little girl, it all came to light now. Now, the two dames aren't talking. First, how can you let my kids that I trusted you to look after leave your house at 2000hrs, to go to a night spot (she has a daughter who's 15), anywhere?
Isn't that too young? I would be upset myself. Very upset I think I'd ban her from talking to any of my kids. And lie about it. Apparently she had promised the girls that if they were ever busted she would deny!!!!! And she does keep her promises, she should be an MP.
Now parents sat down the older girl to ask about all the details they had gathered. Only then did she tell the truth and also mentioned the part that if they were ever found to have gone to a night spot at night, they were on their own. Some parents! NKT.
Back to Pango. Why would a teacher in such a prestigious school resort to such methods of discipline? Rumor has it that she does that so that parents can transfer their kids from that school so that the waitlists can come down! How unfair can one be. Yes, the girls erred in lying to their parents and teachers but to send them home for 3 weeks until they get what they want. Isn't that just a waste of parent's time and money. You are paying for a service that you are not getting. And as for mama mdogo, she needs talking to.
Another issue that came up is that when you school in Pango, you do not say where you live, apparently if you live the leafys you get victimised as you do not get to work hard enough like your sisters in the 'unleafy' surburbs. Now what give anyone that impression? And a teacher who has been in the same school for the last 40 years. Victimization I tell you, and woe unto you if your parents have 'good' jobs, it becomes worse. You become the SI unit of strikes. Anything goes wrong, its you. Some students have said no and decided to quit, going to better private schools, but how many parents are rich enough to afford that? To me, this woman is going too far. She made one of our prominent MPs sue her personally (not the school), for always picking on the daughter. How can one girl burn a dormitory. And despite her alibi, she still went through the same experience making the father go to court. How can a teacher tell a student in front of her mother that if they loved her and with all the money they had, they would have taken her to a private, not a public school. And this is an A student. This is said without the slightest feelings, you would think that she was born like that.
Do you know the reason for all this? Strathmore. Yes, Strathmore. That the kids are so disciplined and they carry themselves with airs that you would want to see in your students in school and kids back home. They behave themselves in and out of school. Imagine one of the teachers from Pangani died and since her village is next to ours, my niece could not go for the funeral but chose to stand and watch from afar lest she is punished when she goes back to school for not wearing what is appropriate while she is on holiday.
To end it all, the girl was taken back to school on Monday and is now back at her desk after repeating the same same story that the disciplinary committee had heard over and over again from one of the girls who had told the truth the first time.
Pangani?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment