Hopes for consolidated bursaries faced headwinds on Wednesday as MPs opposed attempts to take away millions from National Government Constituencies Fund.
The MPs are also not letting go of the National Government Affirmative Action Fund which also disburses around Sh1.5 billion million in bursaries across the 47 counties.
NG-CDF allocates 35 per cent of the Sh137 million amounting to about Sh48 million.
In a heated morning debate, the lawmakers maintained their grounds saying they will not support push to bring all the bursaries to a centralised pot.
They were contributing to a motion by Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris that seeks to collapse all bursary schemes to ensure equitable and free access to free education.
“This House urges the government, through the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the relevant stakeholders, undertakes a comprehensive overhaul of the education bursary system. This is with a view to collapsing all bursary schemes and allocating the funds to the State Department of Basic Education, for provision of free basic education through capitation to be directly remitted to schools,” Passaris said.
Contributing to the debate, MPs were clear that they will not centralise the funds that have helped many needy students to access education.
The development now puts in jeopardy a similar push for a law change to consolidate all the bursary schemes and provide free education in the country.
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula’s office is spearheading the legislative proposal to centralise the bursaries.
Speaker after speaker dismissed the idea saying there was a reason to have the funds decentralised in the first place.
The lawmakers’ main fear is that taking the funds to a centralised pot would make it inaccessible to millions of Kenyans at the grassroots.
Nyali MP Mohammed Ali while opposing the debate raised the issue of accessibility of the funds should it be taken to Nairobi.
“Hon Passaris is proposing all money be put in one basket, how will it be? We fought against centralising everything so that the resources be devolved to the people at the grassroots,” Ali said.
Westlands lawmaker Tim Wanyonyi said the centralised system had been tried and failed, demanding that the constituency bursary is not interfered with.
“Long time ago, we had government bursary which was shrouded in secrecy, only the well connected got access of that bursary,” Wanyonyi said.
Saku MP Raso Dido cautioned of mass dropout if the NG-CDF bursary component is taken to the centre.
“If you give the responsibility to Jogoo House, the many needy students who are going to school today may not be able to go there (Jogoo house),” Raso said.
“It will be unfair to very needy students to decentralise the fund. What will happen to students who are already in school because of bursaries?” posed Turbo MP Janet Sitinei.
Samburu East MP Jackson Lekumontare noted that it will be zero sum game should all the monies be taken to the centre and still parents are made to top-up.
“Even if we release the funds, it (education) will not be free. Instead, we should increase the NG-CDF, ” Lekumontare said.
“It (centralising bursaries) cannot work. Let us not collapse what is working for the country,” he added.
Maraket West MP Timothy Toroitich warned against interfering with a system that is working.
“The elephant is the issue of duplication. Let us develop a system where duplication is avoided whereby when one student is given through Presidential bursary, the same student cannot benefit from NG-CDF,” Toroitich said.
Only two MPs — Mark Nyamita (Uriri) and Raphael Wanjala (Budalangi)— supported the motion to merge the bursaries.
The Uriri MP however supported the motion with a rider that primary and secondary schooling becomes absolutely free.
“I fully support the proposal to collapse all the bursaries, the rider is that we are offering real free primary and secondary education and even Tvets,” Nyamita said.
Proponents of amalgamation have cited lack of transparent selection criteria, delayed disbursements, insufficient coverage of education costs leading to gaps that is being met by parents.
The debate comes at a time the High Court has declared the NG-CDF unconstitutional.
In their decision, Justices Kanyi Kimondo, Roselyn Aburili and Mugure Thande also gave the current NG-CDF a grace period of one year and eight months which will lapse on June 26, 2026, when the fund will cease to exist.
During the period, all pending NG-CDF projects should be completed.
The National Assembly legal team has indicated it will move to the Court of Appeal to overturn the ruling, which threatens to bring to an end the multibillion-shilling kitty.