KUPPET and Kisii Educational Stakeholders Voice Concerns Over TSC’s Mass Teacher Layoffs
The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and other educational stakeholders in Kisii have expressed dissatisfaction with TSC’s actions of firing intern teachers.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) dismissed 742 Junior Secondary School (JSS) intern teachers on Monday, citing gross misconduct.
This decision came just two days after the teachers had called off a nationwide strike, which began on April 17, to facilitate the passage of the National Budget scheduled for Thursday.
Kisii KUPPET Secretary General Joseph Abincha criticized the dismissals, warning that the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) could suffer if such practices continue.
He called for the immediate reinstatement of the affected teachers without any additional conditions.Follow Teachers Updates On X
“It is a sad state of affairs we have in our institutions, CBC will die soon if the TSC continues that way. We want those teachers to be reinstated without any other attached issues against them,” said Kisii KUPPET Secretary General Joseph Abincha.
Nominated Senator Essy Okenyuri echoed these sentiments, referencing a statement by Budget Committee Chairman Ndindi Nyoro, who had assured that all JSS teachers would be employed. She described the mass dismissals as deeply concerning.
The strike was initially triggered by the teachers’ dissatisfaction with TSC’s reluctance to employ them on permanent and pensionable terms.
The strike was subsequently suspended following successful negotiations with the National Assembly’s Labour and Education committees, which approved some of the teachers’ demands and forwarded them to the budget committee.
KUPPET Deputy Secretary General Moses Nthurima has warned that KUPPET would not passively observe the implementation of the dismissals and hinted at potential legal action.
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He emphasized that KUPPET had been actively lobbying TSC and the National Assembly for months and would continue to fight for the absorption of all teachers on permanent and pensionable terms.
The Union is contemplating taking the matter to court, asserting that the dismissals are both unfair and unlawful.
Nthurima reiterated KUPPET’s commitment to challenging TSC’s decision and advocating for the rights of the affected teachers.
KUPPET and Kisii Educational Stakeholders Voice Concerns Over TSC’s Mass Teacher Layoffs
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