TSC boss booed as teachers demand payrise

The ongoing primary school heads conference in Mombasa was on Tuesday marred by protests as teachers demanded implementation of their pay increase.

Teachers Service Commission (TSC) chairwoman Lydia Nzomo was under fire as the agitated teachers shouted her down for not implementing their salary increase.

Kenya National Examinations Council senior officer Patrick Onyango was also booed for implementing a faulty system for registering candidates.

“Pesa, pesa, haki yetu,” shouted the teachers as they rose from their seats and began thumping their feet immediately Dr Nzomo finished  reading her speech without mentioning the salary issue.

“I will address the issue tomorrow,” she said before she was shouted down.

Efforts by the master of ceremony to calm down the teachers made matters worse as they started singing and dancing in protest.

“Every correction made and new entry made you pay Sh300 per candidate yet the mistake is their system. We key in everything correctly but when it comes to uploading the list it comes out blank,” said Kenya Primary School Head Teachers Association national executive member Christopher Mutai on the registration system.

The teachers are currently  embroiled in a battle with TSC, which has gone to the Supreme Court to stop implementation of the salary raise awarded to them by the Court of Appeal.

Dr Nzomo and Mr Onyango left the podium in a huff before concluding their remarks.

Meanwhile, TSC yesterday went to the Supreme Court in its final attempt to stop paying the teachers a basic salary increase even as a strike looms over the pay dispute.

The commission wants the top court to suspend orders issued last month by the Court of Appeal directing it to give teachers a basic salary increase of between 50 and 60 per cent beginning this month pending the determination of the case.

Supreme Court Judge Kalpana Rawal, who is also the Deputy Chief Justice, certified the application as urgent and directed TSC to serve the Kenya National Union of Teachers and Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education ahead of the hearing next week.

Knut has already threatened to call a strike to compel the TSC to pay teachers.

The TSC, through lawyer Stella Rutto, argued that the enhanced monthly salaries translated into a substantial sum for which there is no budgetary allocation.
No funds

“Until the next budget, a sum in excess of Sh17 billion will immediately be required by TSC to pay the enhanced salaries. TSC has no financial resources to pay the same,” lawyer Rutto said.

Court of Appeal judges Mohammed Warsame, Sankale ole Kantai and Jamila Mohammed had directed TSC to effect the increase by August 1 and continue paying until an appeal it has filed is heard and determined.

“A failure to comply with our order will lead to an automatic collapse of the appeal filed by TSC,” ruled the judges.

The case filed before the Supreme Court will be heard on August 13.

Reported by Rebecca Okwany, Abiud Ochieng and Richard Munguti