Four school going children who have been cohabiting in Kilifi for three days, have been arrested by police.
A girl and boy from Bokini Primary School were detained on Thursday and another pair from Kiwandani Primary School was picked up in Kilifi town on Friday.
In both cases the girls had escaped from their homes to stay with the boys. By yesterday morning the children were still being held at Kilifi Police Station awaiting transfer to the Children’s Department in Kilifi.
Kilifi OCPD Clement Wangai, who talked to The Standard in his office on Friday, confirmed the arrest of the school children, adding they were detained for engaging in love affairs.
“The two arrested from Bokini Primary School were discovered by teachers and parents to be in a love affair for a number of days,” said Wangai.
The police boos said the school girl?used to leave her home and visit the boy at their home, saying the trend was discovered after the girl went missing from her parents’ home for two days.
In the incident at Kiwandani Primary School it was said the boy hid a girl classmate in a room at his parents’ home.
A girl and boy from Bokini Primary School were detained on Thursday and another pair from Kiwandani Primary School was picked up in Kilifi town on Friday.
In both cases the girls had escaped from their homes to stay with the boys. By yesterday morning the children were still being held at Kilifi Police Station awaiting transfer to the Children’s Department in Kilifi.
Kilifi OCPD Clement Wangai, who talked to The Standard in his office on Friday, confirmed the arrest of the school children, adding they were detained for engaging in love affairs.
“The two arrested from Bokini Primary School were discovered by teachers and parents to be in a love affair for a number of days,” said Wangai.
The police boos said the school girl?used to leave her home and visit the boy at their home, saying the trend was discovered after the girl went missing from her parents’ home for two days.
In the incident at Kiwandani Primary School it was said the boy hid a girl classmate in a room at his parents’ home.
source:standard digital
Reports show she was found in the home after a search conducted by her parents.
The head teacher at Bokini Primary School, Mwangudza Mwamboje, said?the girl?had been transferred to Katikirieni Primary School.
Good grades
“I had issued a transfer letter for the girl but I was shocked when the parent?came back after four days asking for daughter,” said Mr Mwamboje. According to the head teacher the girl was bright and consistently posted good grades in her class work.
The purported marriages came to the limelight just a week after a report by Plan International revealed that cases of girls dropping out of school due to pregnancies and forced marriages were on the rise in the county.
According to Plan International manager in Kilifi, Margaret Kahiga, about 120 girls from Bahari District in Kilifi dropped out of school last year due to early pregnancies.
The officer blamed parents for the predicament, adding that most of them failed to offer necessary parental guidance to the girls.
In the survey?report, Ms Kahiga revealed male parents preferred educating boy children compared to girls. The report further disclosed the parents were using the girls as wealth acquiring tools by forcing them out of school to marry old rich men who would pay large sums of money as dowry.
Reports show she was found in the home after a search conducted by her parents.
The head teacher at Bokini Primary School, Mwangudza Mwamboje, said?the girl?had been transferred to Katikirieni Primary School.
Good grades
“I had issued a transfer letter for the girl but I was shocked when the parent?came back after four days asking for daughter,” said Mr Mwamboje. According to the head teacher the girl was bright and consistently posted good grades in her class work.
The purported marriages came to the limelight just a week after a report by Plan International revealed that cases of girls dropping out of school due to pregnancies and forced marriages were on the rise in the county.
According to Plan International manager in Kilifi, Margaret Kahiga, about 120 girls from Bahari District in Kilifi dropped out of school last year due to early pregnancies.
The officer blamed parents for the predicament, adding that most of them failed to offer necessary parental guidance to the girls.
In the survey?report, Ms Kahiga revealed male parents preferred educating boy children compared to girls. The report further disclosed the parents were using the girls as wealth acquiring tools by forcing them out of school to marry old rich men who would pay large sums of money as dowry.
