The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has warned that removing hardship allowances from teachers in Tinderet Sub-County, Nandi, could severely impact the region’s education standards.
Nandi Branch KUPPET Executive Secretary Paul Rotich said the proposed move by the government was retrogressive and could trigger a mass exodus of teachers from the area.
“That hardship [allowance], the moment it is done away with, then forget about the quality of education in Tinderet. Teachers will move away from this region,” Rotich warned.
Speaking during the union’s Annual General Meeting held in Tinderet, he noted that Tinderet is home to some of the top-performing schools in the North Rift region, and withdrawing the hardship allowance would not only demoralise teachers but also lead to a drop in academic performance.
Rotich criticised the government’s plan to reassess and possibly scrap hardship allowances in some regions without thoroughly re-evaluating the conditions that led to their classification as hardship areas in the first place.
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In addition, he took issue with what he described as inequitable allocation of municipality allowances, pointing out glaring inconsistencies within Kapsabet Municipality.
“Some schools are still receiving municipality allowance, while others have not been factored in. A good example is Namgoi Secondary School and Kapsabet Boys. These schools share a fence, yet Kapsabet Boys receives the allowance and Namgoi doesn’t,” he said.
Rotich threatened to take legal action if the disparities are not addressed, stating that nearly 15 schools around Kapsabet Municipality have been unfairly excluded from the benefits.
“The Teachers Service Commission is provoking us for sure, because soon I will be forced to go to court so that these schools are brought on board,” he added.
Also speaking at the event, Nandi County Senator Samson Cherargei said he was lobbying for more areas in the county to be officially recognized as hardship zones eligible for allowances under the Equalisation Fund as outlined in Article 204 of the Constitution.
“I am pushing to increase the number of hardship areas in Nandi County, including Terige Ward, Cheptarwai, and Kapchorwa Wards,” said the senator.
By Kimutai Langat
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