Teachers want second term to end by August 5

Kenya National Union of Teachers secretary-general Wilson Sossion with Teachers Service Commission Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia (centre) and Chairperson Lydia Nzomo at Mombasa Beach Hotel on June 21, 2016. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Knut secretary-general Wilson Sossion says destruction of infrastructure should not be allowed to continue.

  • Schools are officially set to close on August 12 and reopen on August 29.

Teachers have asked that all schools close on or before August 5.

Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) secretary-general Wilson Sossion said the move will enable school management boards to engage student leaders and do a reality check on what the problem is.

Schools are officially set to close on August 12 and reopen on August 29.

“Burning schools is burning the future of the nation. We welcome the statement of the President. We also urge students to stop burning schools and share with us their problems,” Mr Sossion said.

He said the destruction of infrastructure should not be allowed to continue, adding that putting up the facilities has cost parents millions of shillings.

“We have to engage as stakeholders and understand what is causing all the mess in our schools,” said Mr Sossion.

He warned that the union will not tolerate humiliation of teachers by the government over the unrest, insisting that they have no role in the mess.

“The government should immediately stop harassing teachers and reinstate those who have been suspended,” Mr Sossion said.

He dismissed the recently constituted eight-member team to investigate the unrest, saying it is not inclusive and independent.

Kenya Union of Post Primary Education (Kuppet) chairman Omboko Milemba also supported the call for early closure of schools.

Mr Milemba warned against suspension of teachers, saying the union will not hesitate to move to court if the Teachers’ Service Commission does not reinstate suspended headteachers.

However Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang while speaking at Mfangano High School in Homa Bay County ruled out closing of schools early adding that the ministry was firm on new policies.

“We took those steps to ensure that students sit examinations in a conducive environment,” he said.

Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i on Tuesday told the Senate Committee on Education that change of school dates was not to blame for the unrest.

LAST YEAR

Dr Matiang’i said that by July, last year, there were more than 98 cases of school unrest.

He told the committee that out of 317 cases of arson that have been reported in schools since 2007, less than 20 per cent had been prosecuted successfully.

Committee Chairman Daniel Karaba asked the Cabinet Secretary to ensure that the ministry tracks all students involved in school unrest all the way to universities and other tertiary institutions.

He also lamented that the decision to allow such students to sit national examinations was encouraging the vice since, despite the crime, the students still find their way to universities.

He said parents of students involved in destruction of school property would be compelled to pay for losses.

Elgeyo/Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen said leaders and philanthropists who have been supporting construction of schools are at a loss.

He said that after destruction of school property, elected leaders are expected by the community to with them in the reconstruction of the destroyed facilities.

Dr Matiang’i said that 99 per cent of schools involved in the unrest are public schools with the problem being experienced in county and extra-county schools.

At the same time, the Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotel, Educational Institutions Hospitals and Allied Workers yesterday raised concern over the wave of student unrest and called on President Uhuru Kenyatta to step in.

Secretary-General Albert Njeru said the Ministry of Education seemed unable to contain the situation and, therefore, the need for intervention of the President.

“As workers, we are concerned with what is going on in a number of schools,” said Mr Njeru at a press conference in Nairobi.

He called on the government to improve the capacity of head- teachers in managing schools.