Balambala MP Abdi Shurie has urged the Teachers Service Commission to post more teachers to Garissa county or it will be compelled to do so.
He said on Tuesday that he will petition the National Assembly to issue a directive should the commission fail to comply. This followed a remark by TSC subcounty director Hussein Musa that parents hire teachers if they expect good results.
Musa said the government has done the much it can to employ teachers for the region, but because of continued insecurity, many have left and those from the region have been quitting the profession.
But Shurie cautioned against using insecurity as a scapegoat to deny residents their right to quality education, adding that terrorism is a global problem.
He said Balambala’s 42 primary schools are served by 121 teachers, creating a shortage of 140 teachers. Its five secondary schools have 70 teachers against the needed total of 70.
The lawmaker spoke in Sankuri Secondary School, where he launched the Sh34 million CDF bursary fund. He said all children have the right to quality education and that requires adequate staff.
Most of the CDF funds are invested in schools, including fees for needy students. But financial support alone does not achieve the desired education results, he said.
“Without teachers, there is no school. There is no need for us to give bursaries when the ratio is one teacher to hundreds of students,” Shurie said.
“If the TSC will not post more teachers, I will petition the National Assembly to compel them to assign them to this constituency and Garissa at large.”
Meanwhile, subcounty education officer Ibrahim Sheikh urged parents with Grade 3 pupils to ensure they are registered as they are due to be assessed in September.
He appealed to parents to keep abreast with the changes the Ministry of Education is putting in place in line with the new curriculum so they improve the performance of their children.
(Edited by F'Orieny)
