Teachers warned against working

Teachers protest outside the Kenya National Union of Teachers offices in Mombasa on September 3, 2015. PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT |

What you need to know:

  • Striking staff eject their colleagues from classrooms, saying they are traitors.

Striking teachers in Kisumu County on Thursday flushed out their colleagues from classrooms.

This comes after the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) on Wednesday announced the start of a nationwide job boycott to press the government to pay its members higher salaries.

The teachers who were ejected on Thursday were from Muhoroni, Nyando, Nyakach and Kisumu East sub-counties.

“We ejected the traitors when we visited various public schools in the region. We are warning teachers against going to classrooms until the strike is called off,” said Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers’ Kisumu chairman, Mr Zablon Awange.

At Lions High School in Kisumu County, a teacher attending to Form Four students had to flee after the union officials stormed the school.

Principal Peninah Oketch said the students had completed the syllabus and were only in school for group discussions.

The union officials also ordered teachers out of Arya Primary, Ahero Primary and Kisumu Day schools.

Mr Awange said they would continue visiting schools to stop teachers from offering their services until the Sh17 billion pay rise is implemented.

The teachers also asked the government to release their August salaries.

ACCUSED OF BETRAYAL

A spot check by the Nation in various schools found empty classrooms, as both teachers and students stayed away.

In some schools, only Form Four candidates were involved in group discussions as the other students did not turn up.

The national library in Kisumu was filled with Form Four candidates.

In neighbouring Siaya, the Kuppet secretary for the county, Mr Wilson Oreme, threatened to block staff in private schools from teaching, accusing them of betrayal.

In Nairobi, learning was paralysed, with primary school pupils opting to remain at home.

Other schools were progressing with examinations, usually conducted at the beginning of each term.

“The strike is on. Right now students are sitting their examinations. Teachers are invigilating, after which they are allowed to leave at their own pleasure,” said Aquinas High School Principal Macharia Mbiyu.

NO TEACHERS

At Lang'ata High School, students were seen roaming within the compound and no learning was going on. A security guard at the gate said only the principal and his deputy had reported for work.

The same scenario was evident at St Georges’ High School, where students had also reported but there were no teachers.

No learning took place at Ngara Girls High School, Nairobi School, Kenya High School and Pangani Girls High School.

Lang'ata Primary School was deserted, with classroom doors locked. In other primary schools visited by the Nation team, pupils were found playing in the fields.

A parent, who identified herself only as Fiona, complained that the strike was a selfish move, which had paralysed the education system.

No teacher reported to school in Mombasa yesterday. Knut’s Mombasa branch secretary, Mr Stephen Auma, said the government should use resources earmarked for development projects that had since been abandoned to pay teachers.

Reported by Everline Okewo, Nelcon Odhiambo, Rebecca Okwany and Venessa Nyasio