As pressure mounts on the leadership of the Trans Nzoia KESSHA over the equitable sharing of seats among sub-counties during last month’s AGM, local principals are now demanding an official stand on the activity fees paid by students in secondary schools.
The principals who requested not to be named said the same incumbent KESSHA office bearers who had fallen silent when specific Sub-branches were being short-changed in the sharing of leadership seats, and have now kept aloof when parents were being charged Khs 100 each as an activity fee per student.
They alleged that the KESSHA officials, under Bernard Masinde’s chairmanship, had failed to advise the Trans Nzoia Teacher Service Commission TSC Director, Solomon Leseewe, during last month’s AGM in Kisumu for the Kwanza Sub-branch to retain the Vice-chair post, which was instead handed on a silver platter to the Saboti Sub-branch.
In the Leseewe polls, Grace Ataro of St Monica’s Girls in Kwanza’s vice-chairperson portfolio was donated to Linet Makete of St Thomas Kapretwa in Saboti.
Mrs Ataro was transferred early last year to Ahero Girls’ School in Kisumu and succeeded by Elizabeth Ms Nyangasi, who, sources said, had little time for a campaign after being transferred to the county only last year.
While it was expected that the Vice-chair could have been retained by the new head teacher of St Monicah or any other woman principal from Kwanza Sub-branch, the second most influential seat was pushed to Saboti Sub-county, which had already occupied the Assistant treasurer post.
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A plot was immediately crafted to move the Assistant Treasurer, Sarah Mwangi, as the head of St. Immaculate Heart’s in Saboti to Bwayi Mixed in Kwanza, moving with the same portfolio to the new station.
This meant that the Saboti Sub-branch now owned the Vice-chair, while the Assistant Treasurer seat moved to the Kwanza Sub-branch. To facilitate the movement, the principal’s seat, which Geoffrey Khisa had held at Bwayi Mixed, was transferred to Sirende Friends, formerly held by Bernard Masinde, currently at Bikeke Boys’.
M. Jacinta, the principal of Maridadi Mixed from Kwanza, had been earmarked as the Sub-branch’s representative to the Trans Nzoia management board. Still, Ms Nyangasi did not present herself for the by-election, which she declined to facilitate.
“We had expected the KESSHA chair not to accept being commandeered by the TSC director to control the elections, which turned out to be a total sham. We are being compelled to understand that the office of KESSHA is weak, incompetent and unable to handle the members’ affairs,” the principals said.
They wondered how Kwanza Sub-county would be compensated for losing the deputy chair after the aspirants used huge sums of money for campaigns and other logistics.
The current office bearers are Julius Kivaze, secretary; Joan Azangalala, assistant Secretary; Eric Ulouch, treasurer; and Mary Mutiny, organising Secretary.
The principals, while talking to the media in Kitale, asked the KESSHA officials to emulate the former county chairs Bernard Lukuya and Emmanuel Mokoya, whom they said could not be swayed by the TSC and MoE officials over office running and teacher welfare.
They, Lukuya, now the principal of Musingu Boys’ in Kakamega and Mokoya of St Christopher Mixed in Cherangany, stood firm against the manipulation of principals’ rights and left office on a clean bill of health.
What is now bothering the heads is a new move to charge students activity fees in some schools without guidelines from the Ministry of Education.
‘’We want this to be put on the records since some of us don’t know whether these are extra fees from parents or are part of the capitation from the government,’’ they said and challenged the KESSHA officials to seek direction from the MoE.
By Abisai Amugune
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