Kaimenyi should stop breaking the law and courting disruption in schools

A wise man fills his ears before he opens his mouth, an African adage goes.

The man at the helm of the Education Ministry, Prof Jacob Kaimenyi, needs to be reminded of the sagacity of this maxim. The Cabinet secretary has sparked public uproar with the gazettement of the controversial Basic Education Regulations, 2014.

One of the most contentious issues in the regulations is the fact that all heads in public schools will be under the authority of the Cabinet secretary.

According to the new regulations, Prof Kaimenyi will now have the powers to appoint and sack school heads. The role of appointing and disciplining head teachers is the constitutional preserve of the Teachers Service Commission.

In as much as the regulations aim to streamline the Education sector by creating a direct link between the ministry and school heads , the manner in which the CS put in place the regulations — in total disregard of due process — leaves a to be desired.

CHEST-THUMPING

Prof Kaimenyi’s chest-thumping and hardline stance can only worsen the situation and is likely to plunge the education sector in disarray as the teachers’ unions have already threatened industrial action should the CS fail to degazette the regulations. The sector, still reeling from the effects of a two-week strike at the beginning of the year, cannot afford another disruption.

It is not the first time that the Ministry of Education is facing controversy, thanks Prof Kaimenyi’s contentious decisions. These include the banning of school ranking in national examinations, which was perceived to have been implemented without proper consultations, his handling of the teachers’ strike, the shambolic Form One selection, and the gazettement of the new fees structure. Amid the acrimony surrounding these issues, Prof Kaimenyi assumed a rambunctious and supercilious attitude towards those with divergent opinions.

It is unfortunate that the CS keeps courting controversy in this important docket. The Ministry of Education is sensitive and crucial and key decisions and policies that affect it should be made on the basis of wide consultation with key stakeholders in order to forestall unnecessary crises.

The centralised decision-making approach the ministry has taken in recent times should be a cause for concern.

The CS must learn to tread carefully. I urge him to borrow a leaf from the President, who withdrew his directive about the police recruits on realising the illegality of his order, and degazette the regulations to allow for due process and prevent another unnecessary standoff.

VIVERE NANDIEMO, Kuria East