A 17-year-old Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidate in Makueni County is appealing for government intervention to allow her to complete her national examinations from her hospital bed after a bicycle accident left her with serious injuries.
Abigail Mbithe, a student at Ngaikini Secondary School in Kibozi Sub-County, is admitted to Makindu Sub-County Hospital, where she is receiving treatment following the accident that disrupted her examination schedule and threatened her dream of becoming a nurse.
Despite her injuries, Mbithe was determined not to miss her KCSE examinations. She managed to sit her first papers on Monday while receiving treatment in hospital but says she was not presented with the subsequent papers.
The candidate now wants authorities to intervene and give her an opportunity to sit the remaining examinations, insisting that her medical condition should not stand in the way of completing her secondary education.
Recounting the circumstances that led to her admission, Mbithe said she fell off a bicycle on Friday while on her way to fetch water. She remained at home for two days before being taken to hospital on Sunday, where she was admitted.
“Nilianguka na baiskeli nikitoka kusiaga. Nilianguka Friday nikamaliza siku mbili nyumbani, nikaletwa hospitali Sunday, nikakuja nikalazwa,” she recounted.
Her determination to sit the examinations saw her take the first papers on Monday from her hospital bed. However, she says the examination papers were not brought to her the following day.
“Mtihani ililetwa Monday, siku ya pili haikuletwa,” she said.
For Mbithe, the interruption is more than a missed examination paper. It threatens a career ambition she has worked towards throughout her school years.
The teenager says she has always wanted to become a nurse, a dream she hopes to pursue after completing secondary school and obtaining her KCSE results.
“Nilikuwa natamani nifanye mtihani, nipite niwe nurse ndo maisha yangu iendelee,” she said.
The family’s predicament has been compounded by another accident involving Mbithe’s mother, Miriam Muteti, who is also receiving treatment at Makindu Sub-County Hospital after sustaining injuries in a separate accident while returning home from visiting her daughter.
Speaking from hospital, Muteti expressed distress over the possibility that her firstborn daughter could miss her national examinations despite having made an effort to sit the papers while undergoing treatment.
She confirmed that the teenager had been presented with examination papers on Monday but did not receive the subsequent papers.
“Monday mtoto aliletewa mtihani akafanya hiyo Monday, Tuesday hakuletewa hadi wa leo,” Muteti said.
The mother said the family had been looking forward to seeing Mbithe complete her examinations and obtain her results, which would help determine her next steps in education.
“Nasikitika juu hakufanya mtihani, na yeye ndiye firstborn, so tulikuwa tunatamani tu apate results,” she said.
Muteti also described the uncertainty facing the family, saying they had been left considering whether the student should be allowed to continue with the examinations or return to Ngaikini.
With both mother and daughter hospitalised, the family’s immediate concern is securing an opportunity for Mbithe to complete her KCSE examinations without further disruption.
The case has brought into focus the challenges faced by candidates who experience medical emergencies during national examinations and the importance of timely arrangements to safeguard their opportunity to be assessed.
Mbithe’s appeal is directed at the relevant government and examination authorities to urgently look into her situation and establish whether she can be facilitated to sit the remaining papers under the appropriate examination procedures.
As she continues recovering in hospital, the 17-year-old remains hopeful that the accident will not bring her educational journey to an abrupt halt.
For a girl whose ambition is to become a nurse, completing her KCSE examinations is an important first step towards turning that dream into reality.
