Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Secretary General, Akelo Misori, has denied the claim that the government has hired the highest number of teachers – 58,000 – since independence.
During a TV interview last night, Misori stated that only 18,000 teachers have been employed on permanent and pensionable terms in the past year.
He clarified that out of the 31,000 teachers recently employed by the government, only 9,000 were on permanent contracts, while 21,000 were given one-year contracts as intern teachers.
The KUPPET boss criticized the government for overstating their employment numbers and also highlighted the unfair treatment of interns.
He mentioned that all teacher unions had a meeting with the President on May 30, where it was promised that interns would be transitioned to permanent terms after one year.
“In the meeting, we had a gentleman’s agreement with the President but we can say we were duped. If the government wants to address understaffing problems, they should keep their promises,” he said.
However, Misori assured that the union is actively seeking ways to address the issue without disrupting learning, including considering protests in the future.
President Ruto had previously announced plans to employ 35,000 teachers this year and recruit an additional 25,000 by August to ensure quality education for all children in the country.
During this year’s Jamhuri Day celebrations at Uhuru Garden in Nairobi, Ruto stated that the government will hire 56,000 teachers to fill the gaps in staffing. He also assured that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will allocate Ksh47 billion to recruit additional teachers.
By Amos Kerich
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