Simmering divisions among commissioners at the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) are threatening to compromise the much-anticipated recruitment of the next Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
These rifts have intensified as the Commission prepares to appoint a successor to former CEO Dr Nancy Macharia, a process now underway amid a court challenge over the legality of the recruitment.
It is widely understood that the current TSC Chairperson, Dr Jamleck Muturi, is fronting one of the candidates in the name of Gabriel Mathenge, the Commission’s Head of Operations.
The Head of Operations portfolio was created outside the Commission’s formal structure by the former TSC CEO, Dr Nancy Macharia in what is perceived as her succession strategy. Mathenge, who was previously Dr Macharia’s personal assistant, was promoted to head this docket despite strong resistance from some commissioners, protests which Dr Macharia is said to have brushed off and implemented all the same.
Education News has learnt that commissioners are currently split into two camps with one said to be aligned with Chairperson Muturi and another comprises four others commissioners chaperoned by one influential Commissioner from Western Kenya. The two factions are reportedly split on ideological terms.
One camp hosts the conservertists while the other is pro-reform of the architecture of the Commission. The former are understood to be largely sympathetic to the former CEO, Dr. Macharia and are rooting for Mathenge to take the helm of TSC, the largest employer in the country. The latter is however more aligned to having a competitive process that will ensure a transparent and accountable process.
The same group is reportedly impressed by the work done so far by the Acting CEO, Evaleen Mitei and won’t mind considering her for the coveted job should the process be readvdrtised afresh.
So bad are the tensions among the two camps that some TSC programmes were nearly sabotaged in the process.
For instance, during the recent transition of teachers’ medical insurance from Minet to SHA, the Chairman is alleged to have given a wide berth to the crucial assignment leaving some senior commission officials and some commissioners to battle in their own.
This situation is said to have forced Mitei to seek support from other Government offices to implement the presidential directive that required teachers to be transfered to SHA by December 1, 2025. The snub by Muturi and his apparatchicks has raised many questions at the TSC headquarters and high Government offices about their independence of some of the commissioners on the award of tenders.
The TSC comprises nine commissioners, namely Dr Muturi (Chairperson), Ms Leila A. Ali, Mr Mbage Njuguna Ng’ang’a, Mr Nicodemus Ojuma Anyang, Ms Sharon Kahindi, Ms Sharon Jelagat Kisire, Mr Timon Oyucho Otieno, Ms Annceta Wafukho, and Ms Salesa Adano Abudo.
READ ALSO:
Where the public can get assistance during the ongoing placement revision exercise
In October, In a another telling move of the schisms among the commissioners, Muturi reportedly introduced a motion proposing that the Acting CEO position be rotated among the directors of various departments until such a time a substantive CEO is appointed.
This motion understandably raised significant eyebrows among the commissioners one eagle-eyed Commissioner questioning the rationale of the whole proposal and yet there was a person already appointed to act on the position. Other commissioners who were taken aback by the move introduced by the Chairman after summoning a meeting, flatly rejected the proposal and asked the Chairman to declare his interests in the appointment of the next CEO.
The matter was later suspended amidst a hail of suspicions but this failed agenda has left egg on the face of the Chairman and this clearly tainted his image within his team and within the corridors of the Commission.
Before the matter was withdrawn, Commissioners reminded the Chairman that the letter appointing Mitei was quite clear- that she would serve in acting capacity until such a time a substantive appointment of CEO is made and that exercise had not been done. They argued Muturi’s actions smacked of malice and vendetta against Mitei who they praised for the major reforms she had initiated at the Commission.
It is believed that a succession plan was hatched during Dr Macharia’s tenure, with some names floated as her possible replacements upon her exit. Two directors, who were key allies of the former boss were touted to have been lined up for the job. But with time, the gameplan may seem to have whithered off due to changing circumstances hence the fight-back by the sponsors of the project.
Other internal contenders for the CEO position include Ms Antonina Lentoijoni (Director of Staffing), Cheptumo Ayabei (Director of Finance) and Lilian Wachira ( Deputy Director, Staffing). TSC has not yet released the names of external applicants for the position.
Insiders say that tensions later developed between Mathenge and Wachira after Mathenge expressed interest in the CEO position.
Against this backdrop is the case of Oyugi v. Teachers Service Commission (TSC) & Others (Constitutional Petition E015 of 2025). The case arises from a constitutional challenge filed in May 2025 by Thomas Mosomi Oyugi against the legality and fairness of the TSC’s recruitment process for the position of Secretary/CEO to succeed Dr Macharia.
Oyugi, in his petition, argues that the Commission advertised the position without first declaring a vacancy and without using a nationwide medium.
And that Section 16(2) of the TSC Act, which requires the CEO to hold a degree in education, is unconstitutional, discriminatory, and exclusionary.
The Employment and Labour Relations Court in Mombasa initially halted the recruitment process in May 2025.
It later allowed the matter to proceed to full trial, with a final ruling scheduled for January 29, 2026. The decision is expected to have far-reaching implications for senior appointments in constitutional commissions.
By Kithinji Njeru
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
>>> Click here to read more informed opinions on the country’s education landscape
