• Teachers Service Commission requires teachers seeking promotion to principal and deputy principal positions to have a Master's degree.
• Kuppet tells the Nancy Macharia-led commission to review and withdraw the new provision.
The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers has urged the government to improve teachers’ welfare and stop constant harassment.
It dismissed a requirement by the Teachers Service Commission that teachers have a master's degree to be allowed to manage secondary schools. Secretary-general Akello Misori said the move is in bad faith.
In August, the Teachers Service Commission published an advert that required teachers seeking promotion to principal and deputy principal positions to have a Master's degree.
But Misori said service delivery to head schools should be pegged on “experience and quality work and not just mere papers”.
"Having a Master’s degree is not a guarantee that one is fit to manage an institution, as some institution heads do not have the Master’s degree," he said.
The unionist was addressing the Migori Branch ninth AGM last Friday. He said the requirement is discriminatory and meant to punish teachers who are working hard to excel in different spheres.
He urged the Nancy Macharia-led commission to review and withdraw the provision, saying it would discourage teachers from giving their best.
“The new provision is not a healthy approach as it will lower the morale of teachers who have been appraised based on sheer hard work and merit,” Misori said.
He said the commission failed to consult sector players.
“What we expect from the commission is appraisal and not oppression. They ought to have upgraded deputies who have served for long in the same capacities to be principal instead of imposing such stringent requirements," he said.
“The majority of teachers are working as principals in acting capacities in most parts of the country, with Migori, Narok, Turkana, Homa Bay and parts of Northern Kenya being the worst hit.”
He said most teachers have stagnated in Job Group L for more than a decade and those who were appointed to the positions of principals have yet to be confirmed.
“Why is the TSC keen on frustrating our teachers? Does it mean they don’t feel the plight of the Kenyan child?”
Migori Branch Kuppet chairman Henry Otunga said a university degree is enough requirement for a teacher to attain the position of principal.
"This requirement is not only punitive, but it also doesn’t conform to the code of regulations for teachers and is against the wellbeing of teachers,” he said.
(Edited by F'Orieny)