The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Nandi branch Executive Secretary Paul Kipchumba Rotich has joined other branch leaders across the country to reject the introduction of proportionate representation (Pro-rata) in the Union, pointing out that it is being introduced without following due process.
In a letter addressed to the Union Secretary General, Akello Misori, dated January 10, 2024, where he fronted several proposals to be considered in the ongoing changes to the Constitution, Rotich states that pro-rata is discriminative and that the current provision which requires every branch to have 10 delegates be retained as is.
“Pro-rata is discriminative. It’s a scheme to convert KUPPET from a union of equals to a club of very few branches. How will you expect a member for example Lamu County with 10 delegates to compete with a delegate from Kiambu with 60 delegates?” wondered Rotich.
According to Rotich, Pro-rata is likely to be misused by some officials to pass amendments that favour them, and the 10 delegates per branch as captured by article 8.2 of the Union’s Constitution must be retained since the clause ensures equality among all members.
Rotich decried how the clause is being introduced into the union constitution without following due process, considering that it came as a review of minutes of the Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) meeting held in Murang’a in 2022.
“Following The National Advisory Council (NAC) meeting, which was held on December 15, 2023, it came out clearly that one of the main agenda was the proposal to amend the constitution. This prompted me to object since the required due process was yet to be complied with,” explains Rotich.
“The National Chairman, Hon. Omboko Milemba read the mood in the meeting and in his wisdom made a ruling to suspend it until such a time when due process is followed. Unfortunately, the same proposal arose again during the Annual Delegates Conference which was held on December 16, 2023, at Kasarani Gymnasium before due process was expedited,” he adds.
Rotich explains that the wording in the 2022 minutes, where the clause on introduction of pro-rata was inserted, is suspect since the matter was discussed during the Murang’a 2022 ADC, adding that all KUPPET members across the country must be involved.
“The wording in the minutes was suspect. It stated that “the Union shall entrench proportionate representation in the constitution to cure discrimination”. No such matter was discussed in Murang’a. It was only raised in plenary as a subject of future discussion. I raised an objection once again…We’re all in agreement that this is the right time to amend the Constitution. This is a process which must be all-inclusive,” says Rotich.
The KUPPET boss has therefore fronted several proposals which he feels should be considered in the ongoing constitutional amendments of the union which include; an affordable nomination fee both at the Branch and National level; and that retirement age for KUPPET officers be the same as that of the members under their employer, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
Others include; that the national office complies with the two-third gender constitutional requirement; that expansion of the national office to take care of affirmative action with Coast, Nairobi, Upper Eastern and North Eastern regions having a representation; that Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), youth and people with disabilities (PWD) representation be brought on board; the deletion of resignation clause to contest in KUPPET for national election; and the National Executive Board (NEB) to fund all national functions.
“The current constitution was registered on November 20, 2017. Copies of the same were first shared with members during the last National Governing Council (NGC) meeting for the period 2016-2020, which was held in November 2020. This was on the eve of the 2021 elections. It was a shocking moment to KUPPET members,” recalls Rotich.
“Some of the clauses which were sneaked in include but not limited to; Nomination fee under article 14.0, Resignation clause under article 13a (iii), which contradicts with article 8.2(b), and Retirement clause at 65 years,” he added.
By Roy Hezron
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