By Andanje Wakhungu
The South Kabras MCA Samson Tali has urged teacher unions within the country to sack officials who are holding political positions to regain its lost glory.
Having been a headteacher, he observed that union officials holding political positions in the country are to blame for the wrangles being witnessed in their respective unions.
He, however, termed teachers who double as union officials and political leaders to be the root cause of the ever-evolving fracas between unions and the Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC).
Tali harshly associated the election of Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) National Chair Omboko Milemba as Emuhaya MP and Kenya Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary-General Wilson Sossion as nominated MP as the root cause of the problems affecting teachers unions.
“KNUT and KUPPET were two giant unions that took government and TSC to task over issues affecting teachers and their demands were met as presented but since some of our union officials entered politics, our bargaining power was compromised and this has reduced these unions into a shell of their own past especially KNUT where its Secretary-General has been compromised and hence unable to bravely and fearlessly fight for the rights of teachers,” he said.
The MCA said it is time these officials choose which position to represent and relinquish the other for other Kenyans.
“The government is using those union officials in parliament to fight and weaken the unions and this is the reason why KNUT has been cut down to size with its membership shrinking day in day out,” he added.
Tali said both KUPPET and KNUT will only be vibrant again if the officials de-associate themselves from the national politics and remain staunch union crusaders.
“Milemba and Sossion are squarely to blame for the woes in our unions and the best they can do is to step down as union officials to pave way for fresh election of new officials who will bring back sanity in the education system,” he added.
