It is the wish of every parent to see their children go to school and come back for the holidays while still in good health. But for two parents, their wishes were shuttered as their children returned home lifeless.
The two are yet to overcome the tragic and mysterious loss of their children while in school and still have many unanswered questions.
They are the questions they believe only an inquest into the deaths can provide them with answers to.
On October 24, 2021, Beryl Jerop, a form one student at St Teresa of Avila Girls in Ndalat, Nandi County, mysteriously died. Jerop’s parents were barely informed of their daughter’s condition while at school and were only told about her death.
A postmortem done on her body at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret, revealed that she died as a result of bacterial meningitis.
The parents believe their daughter’s death was a result of the negligence of the school.
“They never told us our daughter was sick. Up to date, we have never been informed of what happened until she died,” notes mother to the late Jerop.
Only a graveyard at the homestead reminds the family of the tragic loss that shattered the dreams of a young and promising girl they hoped would help them in the future.
Police have since closed the case – with a conclusion that the school played no role in the death.
“We went to Kabiyet police station to follow up on the case and they told us it was closed. We wondered how yet they have never involved us in the investigations,” said the father.
“We don’t know how the girl got sick, we have no details of what transpired, and it’s like the police have something they are hiding. This is a matter that should be handled by a different body,” added the mother.
According to a letter from the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) signed by Andrew Ndete, prosecution counsel, there was no negligence on the school side as the girl was on medication when the school re-opened in October 2021.
“We want a judicial inquest because the circumstances under which the girl died are mysterious. We want all students to record a statement so that the truth is known and the family gets justice,” notes Kimutai Kurui, a human rights activist in Eldoret town.
It is almost a similar case that another family, miles away from Nandi County has been seeking justice for six years now.
Sally Chepngetich Bett is the mother of Emily Chelang’at, a form three student who died while at school, a year after being infected with meningitis at Our Lady of Mercy Secondary School in South B, Nairobi.
Sally has had no closure on this matter. Every day, she wakes up at her rural Kosachei Home in Turbo Sub County, Uasin Gishu to pray for the departed soul of her daughter at her graveyard. She hopes one day, she will find justice.
Just like the family of the late Jerop, Sally Bett believes her daughter was neglected for over two weeks after she complained of severe head and backaches, in what would later turn tragic.
“My daughter would be alive today if the administrators of the school cared to seek better medical care for her,” Sally says.
The girl was first admitted to a hospital in Namanga before moving to Nairobi West Hospital when her condition deteriorated.
She would later die, even as doctors said had Emily been brought earlier, the disease would have been detected and treated.
And even after a parliamentary committee that grilled the Our Lady of Mercy Secondary School in South B, Nairobi management directed the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) to investigate the matter, nothing has been done yet.
The mother believes KNCHR officials are dragging the case.
Kenya National Parents Association (KNPA) chairman Nicholas Maiyo says it is concerning that parents have to fight for justice on their own.
As schools plan to re-open for the first term of 2022 in the next few weeks, it is the hope of the two families that the mysterious deaths of their daughters will be thoroughly investigated through a judicial inquest so that they get justice.
