'I have sold everything,' A father's desperate effort to keep daughter in nursing school

It is every parent's dream to be able to see their child achieve their goals and become what they aspire to be in life. 

This is the same case for Samson Mogaka, a father of five children who has done all he can to ensure his daughter, Priscah Mugusu, realizes her dream of becoming a nurse. 

Priscah finished form four last year with a grade of C minus.

Although she did not get the marks to join University of Nairobi and study nursing as she aspired, she managed to secure a place at the Kapenguria KMTC where she was supposed to report on 22nd April 2024. 

However, Samson who has now been unemployed for the last three years, had to figure out where he would raise Sh. 44,700 for fees. 

"I did a fundraising and through friends and family I was able to raise sh. 25,000, but this was not enough," he narrates. 

Samson says the pain of waking up every morning and seeing the sadness in his daughter's eyes left him broken inside. 

"I woke up one day and decided to sell my household items. The 32-inch television that I had bought for Sh. 12,000, I sold for Sh. 5,000. I also sold my two goats at sh. 2,500. We had also planted some trees in our compound which I sold at Sh. 2,000 and a decoder which I sold for sh. 1,000," he sadly explains. 

Samson adds, "My back was against the wall, so I turned to the school administration and pleaded with them to take my daughter in as I work to complete the remaining amount". 

Luckily, the school allowed her to join and so on 26th April, which was four days after the official reporting date, Samson took Priscah to Kapenguria with Sh. 35,000 in hand.

Upon arrival, he found out that he had to cater for Priscah's accommodation separately, as well as the school uniform, leaving only Sh. 17,000 for school fees.

The remaining balance is something Samson is yet to find.

The father of five says Priscah is the fourth born. Her older brothers are low income earners who do manual work within their village. 

"I have two mud houses and all the five sleep in one of the houses while me and my wife sleep in the other. The eldest brother who is 25 years rides a bodaboda. On a good day, he would give me sh. 100. The other two are casual labourers," Samson adds. 

Mr. Samson says that all his hope lies with Priscah. 

"The deadline for clearing her tuition fee is 23rd June and so far I have not been able to raise the amount." 

Priscah Mugusu says that for he,r she has not quite settled in the school and she is playing catch up with her studies as she reported late and found that her classmates had already covered some units. 

"I am very determined to achieve my dream and become a nurse. All I need is the financial support to enable me to do so," she says. 

The 18-year-old girl from Mihang’o Gaston village in Subukia Central can only hope that someone comes to their aid and helps her achieve her dream of alleviating her family from poverty.