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A wealthy man from Narok has been arrested for failing to educate his 20 children, whom he has sired with several wives.
The 60-year-old Narok resident has never seen any of his children complete their studies, despite having the ability to pay for their education.
Most of his children are primary school dropouts, yet he earns a steady income after leasing his 100-acre farm.
Narok Deputy County Commissioner, Mr Felix Kisalu, revealed that the man has two children waiting to join Form 1, while two others who are in high school are at home due to fees arrears.
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"Despite having enough wealth to support and educate his children, most of them have been forced to drop out of school," Mr Kisalu said.
Mr Kisalu has since cancelled the man's lease on his farm and made it clear that those who want to lease the same land should channel the money toward the children's education.
He has also called upon village chiefs to identify such parents so that the authorities can take action against them.
"I have directed my chiefs to identify such parents for action. We cannot allow children to stay at home due to lack of school fees while their parents have sheep, goats, and cattle. We shall auction them and use the money to pay for their education," Mr Kisalu concluded.
What Prof Magoha said about deadbeat parents
Kenya as a country states that all children who have attained the school-going age should be taken to learning institutions by their parents or guardians.
The government has in the past arrested parents for failing to take their parents to school. The children caught up in the mess have been taken to school by education officials to attain knowledge.
In a separate incident, the late George Magoha warned parents that they should pay school fees for their children after several cases of negligence were reported in 2022.
"If you find the parent has the capacity and does not want to pay, inform us and we will apprehend the parent," Magoha said.
The late CS turned his focus to warning school heads who were sending kids home during exam time for failing to pay fees.
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"If you find somebody is keeping a child who is going to do an exam at home, if you are a coward and don't want to take action, send the name to me, and I will order the police to arrest the principal.
All children who are going to do exams starting in about three weeks are in school and learning. We are not pleading with you because you must comply, or else go create your own school and send the kids away," concluded Magoha.
Families from the pastoralist communities have been in the spotlight for failing to provide education for their children due to their frequent movements in search of water and pasture.