On Saturday, May 13, Aldai Member of Parliament (MP) Marianne Kitany outraged a segment of Kenya by donating textbooks bearing her face.
On May 12, the MP visited two schools, Banja Primary School and Kaptwai Primary School, where she distributed books to kids and reopened many structures that had been renovated.
“I’m happy to have issued the revision books to the candidates of the two schools as I had promised them during their motivational day. This will help them to prepare adequately for their upcoming exams,” she stated.
However, her actions elicited sharp debate among Kenyans, questioning why she put her face on the cover of all the textbooks for the six subjects.
“Is this a school textbook or a biography?” an angry resident questioned.
Many felt that the action only wasted monies from the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) that could have been used for other projects.
The MP emphasized the importance of providing every student with access to high-quality education, adding that she was working on further methods to improve the county’s education sector.
“Politicians should stay away from student book branding, they should donate or facilitate learning resources and not have their face. The name is enough,” another added.
Others noted that the MP reopened a school with flawed structures. They recommended the legislator to look into building new instructional facilities.
However, she was praised by Kenyans who pointed out that the prohibited books would not be resold.
“This prevents the books from ending up on private shelves,” one opined.
“Good work MP, education is the equaliser,” another resident commented.
Kitany was married to Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi before their acrimonious divorce.
