Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Daily Nation
Published on 2024-01-30 15:15:53
Four suspects, including the driver of the lorry used to transport millions of shillings worth of textbooks that were dumped in a public forest in Elgeyo Marakwet County, have been apprehended. According to the Police Commander, Mr. Peter Mulinge, the suspects are currently in custody at various police stations and will face charges once investigations are concluded.
The police are also looking into why a different driver was used to transport the books from Moran Publishers before they were abandoned along the Kaptagat-Kaptarakwa road by the contractor. They are also investigating the disappearance of two cartons of textbooks from the total consignment of 540 books.
Furthermore, the police impounded a truck in Kisii with number plates similar to the one that was used to transport the textbooks to schools in Nyamira County. Although the impounded truck is blue and not white like the one used for transporting the textbooks, it has similar features and number plates. The police intend to review CCTV footage at Moran Publishers to identify the culprits.
The recovered textbooks, which were taken to Kaptagat police station, have been delivered to the respective schools in Nyamira County. The government has changed the distribution model for books to schools in an effort to prevent theft and ensure fair distribution of learning materials. Under the new system, the State buys books directly from publishers to address inequalities, although booksellers have expressed concerns about being excluded from the distribution chain.
The Chairman of the Kenya Book Publishers’ Association, Kamau Kiarie, has called for booksellers to unite and engage with publishers to enable them to distribute books directly to learning institutions, as the association continues to grapple with challenges such as piracy and the high cost of printing books.
