The Kenya National Parents Association has put on notice schools forcing parents to buy uniforms from selected outlets.
Association’s national chairman Nicholas Maiyo says it is against the law for school heads to direct parents to buy uniforms from the schools or outlets picked by them.
In a phone interview with Uasin Gishu News, Maiyo says the decision by some schools to direct parents to purchase the uniforms at specific outlets was one of the reasons contributing to the high cost of education in the country.
“Parents should be allowed to buy uniforms for their children from any outlet, as long as they are of the right quality,” said the Parents Association chairman.
With schools opening this week, and form ones expected to join next week, parents have been up in arms over the exorbitant cost of the uniforms.
Some schools have referred the parents to select uniform distributors from where they are required to source the uniform for the new primary and secondary school entrants, while others directed that the Form Ones would only buy the uniform at the school when they report.
“Section 7 of the competition act outlaws single sourcing of school uniforms,” notes Maiyo, who is now asking parents that might have been asked to buy the uniform from specific outlets or schools to report the matter to the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) for appropriate action to be taken.
“Schools have no mandate to do business with parents, their work is to teach,” said the Kenya National Parents Association chairman.
Last year, the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) said parents should be free to buy school uniforms from their preferred outlets as long as they meet the right specifications.
“It has come to the attention of CAK that some schools, public and private, are recommending outlets…school principals and administrators are hereby cautioned from engaging in this conduct as parents should be free to buy from their preferred shops as long as school uniform bought meets the color, shade, thread count and design as prescribed by respective schools,” read a public notice CAK issued in January 2021.
