Laikipia teachers threaten legal action over promotions

Secondary school teachers in Laikipia County have threatened to sue their employer, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), over the recent promotions which they described as discriminative.

The teachers allege that discrimination was demonstrated in the exercise which has seen only twenty school heads promoted to job group P, with only four being male.

Speaking to the press in his office Thursday, October 6 morning, Laikipia branch Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Executive Secretary, Ndungu Wangenye, the teachers have questioned the criteria used to promote 16 female school principals leaving out their male counterparts.

He said that the male principals were left out and that was why they were demanding that the criteria used be made public or else they move to court within seven days to challenges the promotions.

He regretted that most of the male principals had met the requisite qualifications and wondered how they were left out yet some of those promoted had performed dismally even in their respective schools.

Wangenye noted that this was not even a matter of the one third gender rule and now want TSC to come out clean and explain to the principals the criteria used to promote 16 female principals.

The KUPPET official urged the TSC to make public the results of each applicant so that they could feel contented.

“We have given TSC  a seven-day notice to either increase these promotions, make the results public, explain to teachers the criteria used failure to which we will take legal action,” he said.

He alleged that some malpractices could have taken place in the interview process.