Women Senators Demand Probe Into 36 Teenage Pregnancy Cases at Bungoma School

The reported pregnancy of 36 learners linked to Bakisa Secondary School in Webuye, Bungoma County, has triggered calls for urgent investigations, with women senators demanding that authorities establish who is responsible and protect other girls from similar cases.

The Kenya Women Senators Association (KEWOSA), led by Nominated Senator Catherine Muma, wants the police, Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and education authorities to move quickly on the cases.

The figures reported by the school are stark.

Ten learners are currently pregnant, 13 have already given birth and another 13 have left school after becoming pregnant. The cases were reported between January and September this year, according to the school administration.

Speaking during the Senate Mashinani tour in Kilifi County, Muma said the situation could not be treated as normal.

“We make it seem like it is okay for children to be pregnant. As KEWOSA we detest this and we are willing to work with the Minister for Interior to make sure that the investigations move,” she said.

Nominated Senator Tabitha Mutinda called for those found responsible to be arrested.

“We would want to see those perpetrators are arrested,” she said.

Police begin tracing those responsible

The senators' intervention comes after police and local administrators in Webuye East began investigating the cases.

Assistant County Commissioner Emmanuel Kenga said authorities have a list of reported cases and will follow them individually.

“We will follow up those cases one after the other, including those reported in the past,” Kenga said.

Kenga also stressed that the girls could not be responsible for becoming pregnant on their own, saying a significant number of the cases appeared to involve adults.

The investigations are expected to establish the circumstances surrounding each pregnancy and identify the people responsible.

So far, authorities have not publicly named or charged any suspect.

School points to safety gap

Beyond the investigation, the school administration says the situation has exposed a challenge in how learners travel between school and their homes.

Bakisa Secondary School Principal Ruth Malika said the school is a day institution and does not have a dormitory.

She said the daily movement of girls outside the school compound makes it harder for the institution to monitor their safety.

Malika is now appealing to leaders and other stakeholders to support the construction of a dormitory.

“To do away with this, we need to have our girls in boarding,” she said.

She also said the school does not have a perimeter fence, another challenge that affects supervision of learners.

The school's concerns are part of the broader investigation but do not, on their own, establish that the absence of a dormitory caused the pregnancies.

What happens to the girls who left school?

The 13 girls who have dropped out face another challenge: returning to education.

Kenya's Ministry of Education has guidelines specifically providing for pregnant learners and teenage mothers to continue or resume their education.

Under the national school re-entry guidelines, a pregnant learner should be allowed to remain in school for as long as possible, subject to her health needs. After delivery, learners who left school because of pregnancy should be allowed to return to the same class or grade they were in before leaving.

The guidelines also require schools to report cases where an adult is identified as responsible for a learner's pregnancy to education officials, police and the Children's Department.

That means the response to the Bakisa cases extends beyond finding those responsible. Authorities and the school will also have to ensure that the affected learners are supported to continue their education.

Adult involvement could mean criminal investigations

Where an adult has had sexual intercourse with a child, the matter can have serious criminal consequences.

Kenya's Sexual Offences Act defines penetration with a child as defilement. The law provides different penalties depending on the child's age, including a minimum sentence of 15 years where the child is aged 16 to 17, 20 years for children aged 12 to 15, and life imprisonment where the child is 11 or younger.

However, the existence of a pregnancy alone does not establish who caused it or whether a particular person committed an offence. Investigators still have to establish the age of each learner, identify the person responsible and gather evidence capable of supporting any criminal case.

A school community under pressure

The reported cases have already affected the school community, with the administration saying the pregnancies have disrupted learning and the wellbeing of the girls involved.

For the 10 learners who remain in school while pregnant, the immediate challenge is continuing their education while receiving appropriate support.

For the 13 young mothers, it is balancing education with caring for their children.

And for the 13 who have dropped out, the question is whether they can be brought back into the classroom.

The women senators want the investigations accelerated.

Local administrators say they are following the cases.

The school wants a dormitory and stronger protection for learners.

But the central question remains unanswered: who is responsible for the pregnancies, and what can be done to ensure the girls affected do not lose their education as a result?

That is what the ongoing investigations will now have to establish.

About the Author

Maureen Onyango is a journalist passionate about storytelling, life coaching and spiritual lessons. She studied at the Kenya Institute of Management and enjoys telling stories that inform, inspire and empower communities.