The overworked saying, ‘Retired but not tired’ has been proved true once more, but this time in a big way and appropriately, by a group of intellectuals.
Former high school principals, from a wide geographical cross-section of the country, have come together to form a unique, potentially giant association.
This association, Retired Secondary School Principals Association of Kenya (RESSPAK), brings together all the retired high school principals under one umbrella.
The path to formation of RESSPAK involved great initiative and drive by the members who came up with the idea. These included Philip Cheruiyot, formerly of Simat High School, Dr. Syprose Kizito, formerly of Rurigi High, and Dr. Isabella Wainaina, formerly of St. Mary’s Girls, Igoji.
Others were Julius Kamatei and Dr. Martha Tubei, retired from Wareng High and Moi University High respectively. Together with others, these former principals came up with an interim office to run the anticipated association, before it was registered.
The interim office consisted of:
- Philip Cheruiyot (Chairman)
- Dr. Syprose Kizito (Vice Chair)
- Dr. Isabella Wainaina (Secretary)
- Julius Kamatei (Treasurer)
- Dr. Martha Tubei (Org. Secretary)
Their first assignment was to have an interim constitution.
Education News had occasion to talk to the interim office recently. The spirit and enthusiasm expressed by them was unarguably contagious. For one, the interim secretary of the association, Dr. Isabella Wainaina, expressed the determination of the officials to have a fully functional association that would reflect the oomph and sagacity of this interim office.
“We were determined to start off well. Thus we have had to put in place a constitution; something that would guide us along the right path. Without that, we would have been moving about in circles. It was a onerous task; but with the help of some friends, we succeeded. The association was registered on 6th May, 2024,” she says proudly.
Asked when the idea of the association came up, Mr. Cheruiyot, confides that he and several other retired principals have had the idea of an association for long. The forerunners, he reveals, had a vision of bringing together these very experienced entities of human capital, and utilizing them for the well-being of both themselves, and society in general.
“It is not good that people who have so much potential as heads of schools can just retire and go into oblivion. That is counter-productive. It is wastage of human capital; akin to burying one’s talents in the mud. It is best to identify what these retired chief executives can do, and have them do it. That is how former heads of schools can give back to society from which they have gained so much.”
The constitution of the association is aimed at achieving this, inter alia.
Another very important motivating factor for the association’s existence is socialization. The association aims at bringing together these former principals so that they can continue bonding, as people who have had a common destiny, professional and social interests, and the like.
“We have been associating for long,” says Mr. Kamatei, the interim treasurer. “We have followed the same path; pursuing a common destiny. It is a social imperative that we have to keep together, instead of separating into different folds just because we have retired. Oxen cannot suddenly and easily be yoked with horses or goats. They will not plough properly,” he jokes.
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Apart from the socializing aspect, another key issue of great interest to the association is fighting for retirees’ rights. The committee observes that in this country, retirement has become something akin to a traumatic experience.
“In some countries, people don’t retire,” Dr. Kizito, the interim vice chair, observed. “It is viewed as a form of discrimination against the senior citizens. In countries like Canada and many in Europe, one can only be retired if they volunteer to, or when there is proof of inability to deliver on their mandate. But here, it is the law to retire at a certain age. Some, in fact many, of us felt strong enough to go on for several more years by the time we were retired. It was thus imperative that we felt the need to find ways of continuing to contribute to society. By forming this association, we are set to do exactly that. We intend to prove a point: retirement is not an end, but a beginning. We aim to remove the sting from retirement. We want it to be even something to look forward to, since it need not herald a period of suffering.”
To this end, the association aims to do whatever it can to ensure that the retired principals, and other teachers, get their gratuity and pension as soon as possible.
“There seems to be this strange belief in certain quarters that when a teacher retires, they stop living, till it suits someone’s pleasure and convenience to pay them their dues,” Kizito says.
“In many cases, this can last as long as three years. This is callous. Must a teacher stop eating just because they have been retired? Why should someone’s children drop out of school due to retirement? Why should marriages break due to one’s inability to provide for their families? We are in discussion with the Teachers Service Commission, and other players, to put a stop to this. If necessary, we will have parliament acting on this issue. We are proposing that when one retires, their salary should not be stopped. They should continue earning; any overpayment, and cases of lost books and pieces of chalk can be charged from the gratuity. That makes sense,” she added.
The office is glad to note that TSC’s response has so far been very encouraging. They have promised to work on teachers’ retirement files with due speed.
Another great support on this has come from the interim officials’ engagement with the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Education, Hon. Julius Melly.
In a meeting held with the committee on 20th July, 2024, Melly assured the officials that he would work fully with the association so that its role as a stakeholder in the education sector would be fully recognized. He also challenged the officials to consider including all retired teachers in their ranks; right from primary to secondary, something the interim committee said would be looked into by the association during its AGM.
The AGM, the officials say, will be held in Mombasa from 19th September.
By Okoth Opondo
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