A 24-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted and humiliated by teachers at a Kitale school after visiting to seek answers about her sibling’s welfare, sparking a police investigation and a sharp dispute between her family and the school administration.
Footage recorded on October 6 inside the staffroom at Kitale Forest Comprehensive School shows Donna Makena visibly distressed and surrounded by several members of staff.
The images, which have since circulated widely, prompted Trans Nzoia County police to open an investigation into what allegedly transpired that afternoon.
According to Makena, the trouble began when her sibling, a Grade Seven pupil, was sent home during an examination period over unpaid lunch fees.
She says she went to the school to seek clarification from the head teacher, but what she expected to be a calm conversation quickly deteriorated. She alleges she was forcibly removed from the head teacher’s office before being assaulted and humiliated by a group of teachers.
Makena’s father, Zaverio Mung’athia, was deeply shaken by what happened to both his daughter and son. Speaking out in support of his children, he said no parent or guardian should ever face violence when they visit a school to discuss fees.
“There is no way a parent or guardian can come to a school to negotiate about lunch fees and he or she gets attacked by the teachers,” Mung’athia said.
He added that not a single person stepped in to help his daughter during the confrontation, saying, “Nobody cared to help that girl.”
Kitale Forest School response to Makena’s alleged attack
The school administration firmly rejects Makena’s version of events. Pascal Wanyonyi, the board of management chairman, acknowledged that staff had restrained Makena by tying her hands but maintained this was a response to violent behaviour on her part.
“Our headmaster has reported this matter at the police station and her hands were tied because she had become violent,” Wanyonyi said.
The school maintains that the learner had been sent home in line with policy over outstanding lunch fees, and that Makena arrived at the institution in a confrontational state rather than seeking a calm resolution.
Investigators have since referred the matter to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for review and further action, meaning the question of who bears responsibility for the events of that afternoon will ultimately rest with legal authorities.
