Machakos Boys High School, commonly known as Machakos School, has closed indefinitely due to student unrest.
Principal Benson Manoo implemented the closure early Monday following Sunday night’s turmoil.
Students were sent home as the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) intensified their national strike.
On Sunday night, tension escalated at Machakos High School.
Initially, officials told agitated students to return to their dormitories. However, some tutors living on campus fled when learners reportedly turned violent.
Several other public secondary schools closed indefinitely due to unrest. Mitaboni ABC Girls in Kathiani subcounty shut down Sunday night.
Additionally, Masii Girls, Matungulu ABC, and Mtituni SA secondary schools closed Monday.
Two girls’ schools in Machakos and Makueni counties suffered fires that night. At Nyayo Girls in Kalama subcounty, two dormitories burned around 8:25 pm, displacing 146 girls.
Two Form 2 girls were arrested for suspected arson. Similarly, a dormitory housing 55 students at Makindu Girls High School in Makueni burned following unrest.
Kuppet’s Machakos branch secretary general, Musembi Katuku, confirmed the closures. Katuku told the Star on Sunday evening.
Kuppet officials held a National Governing Council meeting, declaring their strike ongoing. They urged parents to collect their children.
Kuppet secretary general Akelo Misori stated,
The term’s first week saw demonstrations as Kuppet-affiliated teachers protested against the Teachers Service Commission.
These incidents follow Kuppet members allegedly trying to remove working teachers from schools.
Kuppet members vow to halt learning nationwide until the government addresses their demands.