Mandera leaders have called for a homegrown solution to the current teacher shortage in the region.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) transferred 950 teachers in January after three colleagues were killed by suspected al Shabaab militants in Garissa county.
In a resolution read by Mandera Governor Ali Roba during a one-day education symposium, stakeholders agreed to seek devolution of education in Northeastern region.
Roba said it was time county governments sought devolution of education as a permanent solution to teacher shortage.
The governor said the region's children had a right to education like all the others but TSC was killing the future of the region.
"We should now think of employing untrained teachers to fill gaps left by the non-local teachers as every time the government employs non-locals, they later abandon our children and leave the same gaps. We will not allow any future employment of tutors who are not from Northeastern, " Roba said.
He said workers deployed in other sectors of government and the private sector were still working and wondered why TSC had taken the decision.
He added:“Have a lot of illiterate people and you will see the consequences. In fact, the insecurity challenge witnessed in the region is as a result of low education among our people."
The governor said many youths in the region had joined terror outfits as a result of lack of even basic education. They cling to criminal gangs as a source of livelihood.
He termed the current teacher shortage a time bomb waiting to explode and the sooner a solution was found the better.
Roba said residents had a role in ending the current tutors shortage by collaborating with government in improving security of the region.
Stakeholders also proposed that school boards of management be allowed to immediately employ teachers as more permanent solutions were sought through training of more local youth.
The National Government Constituency Development Fund will be used in employing teachers, with the county government setting aside a kitty in their budgets for the same purpose, they said.
Culture and Sport administrative secretary Hassan Noor blamed TSC for withdrawing teachers from the region, saying the decision glorified terrorism.
Noor, a one time provincial administrator, said the solution was not transferring teachers but curbing insecurity.
County commissioner Onesmus Kyatha assured workers in the region the government had deployed enough security personnel and was committed to protecting their lives and property.
Kyatha said security was the responsibility of every resident and asked locals to protect teachers from suspected al Shabaab attacks.
Mandera Knut executive secretary Mohamed Sheikh asked MPs to deal with the teacher shortage through Parliament or the courts.
Sheikh asked for merging of schools so as to share teachers besides employing untrained teachers to fill the gaps.
