Board of KMTC Students’ Placement Replaced
Board of KMTC Students’ Placement Replaced. Susan Nakhumicha, secretary of the health cabinet, has overturned the appointment of the board of directors for Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), and a new group has been published in the gazette.
According to the CS, a gazette notice dated August 18, 2023 declares that the appointments of Jennifer Bosibori Kibagendi, Stephen Ochiel, Naomi Kathure Mutua, and Fredrick Wamwaki are revoked.
Nakhumicha appointed Paul Kaino Cheboi, Eunice Wangui Karanja, Hardlyne Lusui, and Joseph Ouma Atonga to the board for a three-year term beginning on August 18, 2023.
Josea Kiplangat Cheruiyot has taken over as board chairman in lieu of Zachary Muburi Muita.
A few days after the National Assembly’s Health Committee convened and instructed KMTC to resume placing and admitting students to the institutes, the adjustments were implemented.
However, insiders told The Standard that when President William Ruto decided to allow Kenya Universities and Campuses Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) to place students at KMTC campuses, he personally intervened to ensure fairness in the admissions process.
A source familiar with the machinations around student placement claimed that “the president was keen to ensure equity, fairness, and balanced access to the training opportunities during placement of students to all KMTC colleges.”
The decision to shift the process to KUCCPS addressed the long-running conflict between the two government bodies over the placement and admission responsibilities.
When the news first broke in July, KUCCPS Chief Executive Dr. Mercy Wahome said: “This is a milestone because KMTC and KUCCPS have a common objective of enhancing access to quality higher education and training opportunities in a manner that is equitable to all Kenyans.”
She included items like community health nursing, mental health and psychiatry, midwifery, radiography and imaging, medical laboratory sciences, occupational therapy, optometry, pharmacy, physiotherapy, and public health in her list of diploma and certificate programmes.
On July 22, 2023, KUCCPS opened the application portal for students to apply to various KMTC colleges.
In a statement to newsrooms, Dr. Wahome said that the application was intended for students who passed the KCSE exam between 2013 and 2022.
She said that 30 KMTC programmes are accepting applications. August 4 was the application deadline in 2023.
The placement process was brought up in front of MPs on August 10; however, this was only a few days after the application deadline had passed.
To discuss enrolling the students in the KMTC universities, MPs called KUCCPS management and senior Ministry of Education officials on August 10.
Ezekiel Machogu, the Education Cabinet Secretary, was absent from the meeting and was replaced by Dr Wahome, the CEO of KUCCPS.
The student placement procedure, which the KUCCPS was already conducting during the meeting, was ordered to be suspended by the MPs.
They also gave KMTC instructions to extensively promote and place students at various colleges across the country.
Nakhumicah informed The Standard on Saturday that the MPs’ decision had been changed.
She stated, “The (National Assembly’s) Health Committee’s decision was rescinded.
Insiders claim that the board was reorganised as a result of the discovery that some of its members were interfering with the recruiting procedure.
According to an insider, it might be uncomfortable when someone is thought to be pulling in a different way after higher powers make certain strategic decisions for the welfare of Kenyans.