Knut, TSC clash over Alliance High principal's exit

Teacher’s employer has criticised Kenya National Union of Teachers' position on the exit of Alliance High School David Kariuki following horrifying student accounts of rampant bullying last month.

Teachers Service Commission, in a hard- hitting letter to Knut Secretary General Wilson Sossion, reminded the Knut secretary general that Mr Kariuki was not a member of the union and questioned his interest on the matter.

“Mr Kariuki asked for early retirement and was not forced out,” said TSC a move that angered the Knut leadership. Mr Sossion, however accused the teachers' employer of handling the issue unprofessionally.

“Procedure requires that any quality assurance report is served on the board of management who discuss and recommend action. Why did the Cabinet Secretary for Education choose to conduct an inspection only in one school and misuse the report by bundling out Mr Kariuki,” questioned Mr Sossion in a letter dated March 6 to TSC Chief executive officer Nancy Macharia.

He went on: “While the matters raised in the report are so grave, the method used is totally wrong and constitutes an attack on the teaching profession. You cannot engage in education reforms by brutally bringing down institutions and bringing down individuals.”

ANOMALIES NOTED

Mr Sossion said anomalies noted in any quality assurance assessment are forwarded to the Boards of Management which recommends action.

“The Teachers Service Commission and the Ministry of Education shall then act on the recommendations of the Boards of Management. The reckless activities that we have witnessed including arraigning prefects in courts of law and arraigning teachers in courts of Law deeply injures the teaching profession irreparably,” added Sossion.

He accused the commission for using what he described as 'junior officers' from the legal department to reply to Knut on serious correspondences.

“Our firm position remains unchanged because we are under duty to protect teachers and the teaching profession fairly. The independence of the Teachers Service Commission in teacher management has been gravely compromised,” said Mr Sossion.

"We demand for remedy in all these matters because bringing down institutions is not an acceptable process of improving teaching standards. The actions witnessed constitutes unfair labour practice, he said.

Despite Mr Sossion’s defence of the former Alliance High principal, the school's Board of Management has admitted that bullying occurred at the school.

“It is among these boys that the ugly beast of bullying raised its head. The board would like to apologise to the parents whose sons have been bullied by other boys.

We apologise to the old boys who have been embarrassed by what they have heard,” said board acting Chairman Sam Ncheeri.

CONDEMNED BULLYING

Anglican Church of Kenya archbishop Jackson ole Sapit on Sunday condemned bullying of students and asked the institution to craft a new vision to take it forward following the ugly incidents.

Speaking during the 91st founder’s day service at the school, Rev Sapit said re-writing of a new vision for the institution will ensure that there are no more cases of bullying students which he described as outdated practice.

“I wish to thank the media for highlighting the issue so that it can be corrected. It was not only negative but also positive as it has given us an opportunity to correct the mess,” said Archbishop Sapit but asked the media to now focus on the positive also.

As the sponsors of the school, he said they will work together to ensure that students in the institution live in a conducive environment.

In the report, investigators captured shocking details of how prefects tortured students at the school in the name of induction, sometimes waking them at nigh to force them to sleep on graves of founders and to “swim” on grass. It also included “beatings, slapping and caning with pipes”.