CONTROVERSIAL: Boni Khalwale says students should be caned. He says he has already prepared a Bill that would allow corporal punishment in schools. According to him, parents who don't want their children caned should take them home and leave the rest to study.
This is a very interesting but dangerous debate.
Personally, I say there are two major issues Kenyans need to discuss.
1️⃣ How do you protect teachers from criminal and civil liability?
Imagine a teacher canes a student twice on the hands. The student goes home, a parent gets angry, obtains a P3 form, reports the teacher, TSC interdicts them, and their career is effectively destroyed.
But on the other hand, some teachers could easily abuse such powers, seriously injure students, or even cause deaths. How do we balance accountability and discipline?
2️⃣ How do you deal with extremely indisciplined students willing to burn down an entire school, putting thousands of learners at risk?
Take the case of Wenje today. Students were reportedly sent home after the principal allegedly received a note at his doorstep warning that the school would be burned if they were not allowed to leave. The principal complied.
That is not a small discipline issue. That is a complete breakdown of authority.
Personally, I agree that tougher measures are needed. But I lean more towards suspensions, expulsions, counselling, and criminal consequences for serious offences rather than bringing back the cane.
Either way, Kenya seems to have reached a point where doing nothing is no longer an option.
I am especially interested in hearing from teachers, parents, and former students because this debate affects all three groups differently.