Eight months after diligently serving during the 2024 national examinations, dozens of drivers and security officers in Kisii County remain unpaid a plight that has left many disillusioned and in despair.
These essential workers played a crucial role in the storage, transportation, and safe delivery of examination materials between October and December 2024, covering the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA), Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE), and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams.
Despite submitting their bank details and fulfilling their duties, many have yet to receive any compensation. As the next exam season looms, their frustration is growing.
“Inasikitisha kwamba sisi kama madereva tulifanya kazi kwa bidii pamoja na wengine ambao walilipwa kitambo. Sisi bado tunasubiri,” lamented one driver, expressing the pain of being overlooked despite faithfully executing his assignment.
Another driver shared the daily struggle: “Tunaamka saa kumi na moja asubuhi, wengine tunatumia piki piki hadi kufika mahali magari yetu yako. Miezi nane sasa bila malipo. Na hakuna wa kutusikiliza.”
The issue is not limited to drivers. Members of the security detail who manned exam containers and escorted exam materials across the region also report non-payment. Some officers who chauffeured senior government officials during monitoring visits said they too have been sidelined.
“Serikali imetusahau. Tulitumika, tulivumilia hali ngumu na leo hii, hakuna hata habari za malipo,” said a police driver.
The silence from relevant government agencies has only deepened the wound. Without updates, explanations, or timelines, the affected individuals feel invisible and unappreciated, despite years of loyal service.
While national exams demand high levels of coordination and integrity, the backbone of the process those on the ground feel abandoned.
Their only remaining hope is that someone in authority will finally acknowledge their sacrifice and release the payments they were promised. Until then, they continue to suffer quietly, clinging to the belief that justice, though delayed, is not denied.
