Kuppet wants TSC to revoke over 25,000 teacher promotions, cites unfair distribution
KUPPET called for a review of the promotion process to ensure fairness, advocating for a merit-based approach that considers staffing levels in different counties.
The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has asked the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to revoke the recently published teacher promotions, citing unfair distribution.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, the union claimed that regions with high teacher populations were shortchanged in the process.
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On Wednesday, TSC published a list of 25,252 teachers who have been promoted to various grades. The list, accessible on the TSC website, includes successful applicants from interviews conducted earlier this year.
TSC had advertised the vacancies in late 2024, with 5,690 teachers applying for promotions in November and 19,943 in December. However, 381 vacancies remain unfilled.
KUPPET Acting Secretary General Moses Nthurima said the union's National Executive Board had received multiple complaints from teachers who felt unfairly sidelined.
He noted that the primary concern was the equal distribution of the 25,252 vacancies across all 47 counties, regardless of disparities in staffing levels.
“The clear implication is that teachers in some counties were highly favoured, while their counterparts in densely populated counties continue to pile up on merit lists due to high competition among qualified candidates,” Nthurima said.
KUPPET called for a review of the promotion process to ensure fairness, advocating for a merit-based approach that considers staffing levels in different counties.
The National Treasury allocated Sh1 billion to the commission for the promotions, though the TSC had initially requested Sh2 billion.
The demand comes after revelations by Murang'a Woman Representative Betty Njeri Maina that government-aligned MPs were recently given TSC employment letters to distribute to their constituents.
Teachers' unions have condemned the practice, saying it undermines meritocracy and denies deserving Kenyans opportunities in a country struggling with high unemployment among trained teachers.
"We were called to State House, and I will say it openly. We were given letters for the employment of teachers. I went with eleven MPs from Kiambu, and each was given twenty letters, totaling 220 letters," Maina said.
She further alleged that MPs who failed to attend the State House meeting had disadvantaged their constituents by not securing job allocations.
Her remarks have now reignited concerns over the politicisation of teacher recruitment.
Nthurima and Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Deputy Secretary-General Hesbon Otieno warned that such political interference would negatively impact the education sector.
“You can imagine when MPs are choosing their cronies and relatives to be employed while those who completed college in 2016 are still waiting for jobs. Will you be employed because you know a politician? What kind of image are we creating?” Nthurima posed.
He warned that the practice undermines the principle of meritocracy, adding that employment in the education sector should be strictly merit-based.
“We want to take exception with TSC. How do they issue employment forms to politicians? It is very unfortunate because they are politicising education, which is not the way to go,” he added.
KNUT’s Hesbon Otieno also voiced concerns, stating that political interference would destabilise staffing norms at TSC and lead to an inequitable distribution of teachers across the country.
Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya also weighed in on the issue, stating that the letters were only given to select leaders aligned with the government.
“Those with money get their letters; those without must rely on government handouts. This practice is disadvantaging the most vulnerable and deserving teachers,” Natembeya said.
The Kenya Kwanza government had pledged to employ 116,000 teachers within two years of taking office, with 56,000 permanent teachers and 20,000 intern teachers recruited so far.
KUPPET has also opposed the government’s proposal to make Mathematics an optional subject at the senior school level, arguing that such a move would undermine workforce development and educational standards.
Nthurima insisted that making Mathematics optional would be detrimental to students' academic and professional futures.
“KUPPET rejects the government's proposal to make Mathematics an optional subject at the senior school level,” he said.
“Maths is an essential subject for building a competent workforce for the 21st century. Indeed, Maths also has a wide application in the learning of all other areas, including humanities, sports, and of course, STEM.”
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