Sossion still opposed to transfer of headteachers

KNUT Secretary General Wilson Sossion has once again opposed the transfer of headteachers saying it is a policy that has not been properly negotiated or agreed upon by education stakeholders.

Sossion told Citizen Extra, that the transfer of headteachers is against the constitution, adding that they do not meet international standards of teachers redeployment.

“The different stakeholders were not engaged, there is a disease of lack of proper consultation,” lamented Sossion in a live interview from his home in Bomet.

According to Sossion, the policy will not work and the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) should drop the agenda.

“What TSC is doing is fundamentally wrong. Professionally, you cannot develop an idea of removing teachers from their homes, its against the UN policy.” said Sossion.

The ODM Nominated MP says that as a union, they will issue recommendations to TSC come Tuesday next week  on the way forward.

This comes just a month after the Union Secretary General threatened to paralyse the opening of schools if TSC does not suspend the mass transfer of principals and headteachers.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, December 26,  Sossion directed the affected teachers to disregard the transfer notices sent to them.

“We totally oppose the unilateral decision to transfer 557 principals. We consider the idea ill conceived and we suspect the plotters do not mean well as this action could, at the end, negatively affect the sector in many ways including demoralising hardworking and successful teachers who are taking this action as punishment and poor performance in the affected schools,” said Sossion.

TSC Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia however defended the move saying the transfers will be implemented gradually until all the objectives of the reform measures aimed at improving learning outcomes in schools are fully realised.