We shall occupy Harambee Avenue until Teachers are paid – Kalonzo

CORD co-principal Kalonzo Musyoka has said the coalition members will occupy Harambee Avenue until teachers are paid the requisite increment.

Speaking in a CORD rally held at Uhuru Park in Nairobi, Kalonzo castigated the government for failing to pay teachers despite the Employment and Labour Relations court ruling of a 50 to 60 per cent increment.

He claimed that the government is stringed tightly in corruption and diverted money that would have been used to pay teaches to fraudulent dealings.

“We are not here to seek political mileage. The government should know that it has no choice but to pay teachers, failure to which we will converge every Tuesday at Harambee Avenue to push the government to pay teachers their dues,” said Kalonzo.

The Wiper Democratic Movement leader further accused the government of contravening the Constitution by denying children the right to education.

He encouraged the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) to push for the salary increment saying the government has the money to effect the 50 to 60 per cent salary increment.

“I respect KNUT Secretary General Wilson Sossion and Chairman Mudzo Nzili and would like to let them know that there is a tide in the affairs of the teaching community in this,” he said.

Kalonzo also questioned the legitimacy of the government saying President Barack Obama’s utterances, referring to the Jubilee Administration as the legitimate government in place instead of the elected government, was a statement of proof.

He recalled his time as Minister for Education in 1998 saying he embraced dialogue in resolving teachers’ issues during the time and urged the government to do the same.

“The right to education is so basic that it is even compulsory. I embraced negotiations during my time to ensure education is not affected and the government should do the same.”

Kalonzo also stated that plans are underway to push for a referendum early next year in order to effect changes in the country.

On her part, Narc-Kenya party leader Martha Karua acknowledged the role played by teachers in moulding leaders in the county saying the government should honour the ruling by the courts and effect the increment.

“We could not have been leaders without teachers, and neither could the president. We want teachers to be paid their dues because we know the government has the money to do so,” she said.

She further called on the government to reach out to teachers and negotiate on the way forward to end the impasse.

Kakamega Senator Bonny Khalwale accused the government of engaging in corruption saying the money used in wasteful expenditure should be diverted into paying teachers.

Machakos Senator Johnson Muthama and Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar accused the government of harbouring corruption in its systems, saying Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru should be investigated for the loss of Ksh791 million through fraudulent transactions at the National Youth Service (NYS).

The rally comes in the face of a heated standoff between teachers and the government over the Employment and Labour Relations court ruling awarding teachers a 50 to 60 per cent increment dating back to June 2013.

The standoff has resulted in a teachers’ strike that entered its fourth week on Monday.

The Employment and Labour Relations court is set to rule on the legitimacy of the strike on September 25.