Where are you? Parents ask Ruto on teachers’ strike
President William Ruto
Parents and education stakeholders now want President William Ruto to intervene and resolve the looming teacher's strike which they fear might disrupt the education calendar and exams.
Through their National Parents Association, the parents and school managers want the Head of State to assure Kenyans that there will be no disruptions during the schools reopening for the crucial examination term.
The National Parents Association chairman Silas Obuhatsa on Sunday called on Dr Ruto to avert the job boycott called by the 406,635 teachers over a raft of issues registered as a dispute with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
Last week, Cabinet Secretaries John Mbadi (National Treasury) and his Education counterpart Julius Migos revealed that the government was grappling with scarce resources.
Mr Mbadi said there were no funds to change the terms for the 46,000 interns to permanent and pensionable terms, and recruit 20,000 new teachers as demanded by trade unions.
The CS said there was a Sh13 billion gap in the Teachers Service Commission budget.
However, parents said they were in a dilemma on whether they should send their children to school, especially for boarders, after the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) called on their members to proceed on strike on Monday, when schools re-open for the third and last term of the year.
“We are waiting to see, but worse still, it will be very expensive for parents to send children to schools only later to be asked to go and pick them, especially those in boarding schools which are far away. Does it make sense?” asked Mr Obuhatsa.
The association said parents had prepared learners to report back to school on Sunday, especially for boarders, ahead of reopening tomorrow.
Mr Obuhatsa said it would be very dangerous for children to go to schools in the absence of teachers.
“President Ruto please intervene, you are a parent just like us. We have had several accidents happening along the highways across the country and it will be very bad for schools risking students’ lives by sending them back home due to the strike,” he added.
The association said the third time is the worst time for industrial action due to crucial examinations.
The term is set to begin on August 26 and run for nine weeks, and the Form Four national exms are scheduled to begin in November.
Other tests include the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) and the Kenya Intermediate Level Education Assessment (KILEA). National exams including the KPSEA and the KILEA examinations are scheduled for October 28 to 31.
Other education stakeholders, led by Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (Kessha) National Chairman Willy Kuria, are however optimistic that the standoff between TSC, Knut and Kuppet will be resolved before reopening of schools.
“I am certain that both parties will agree before schools reopen. I do not think we have many choices. Even if the initial meetings failed, I am sure there is another chance to meet again and again. I do not think there is anybody in Kenya who would like to play around with the third term and the exams,” said Mr Kuria.
In an interview with Nation, Mr Kuria urged the union leadership and the teachers’ employer to come together and agree to end the stalemate for the benefit of the learners and teachers.
“Either way, it is give and take and we are looking forward to a mutual understanding between TSC and the unions,” said Mr Kuria.
He said the third term is a packed period with revision and examinations.
“This is an examination term, we are trying to bring the students back to school after the activities in both the first and second terms. It is in this term that we intensify revision after a month or so then we kickstart the exams,” he said.
The educationist, who is also Murang’a High School Principal, said national examinations are intensive activities that need all stakeholders’ involvement.
“It involves everyone, the teachers, the students and the entire public so it’s a very packed term. That is why we hope the looming strike will be resolved. But we also want to laud the state for disbursing capitation on time, this is a great step forward,” said Mr Kuria.
The government has already released Sh21.8 billion as capitation grants to public basic education institutions, in readiness for the new school term.
Mr Kuria said timely disbursement of capitation would help the school managers to prepare for KCSE.
“We will open schools with funds, but we shall be waiting to see how much has been disbursed. There will be no interruptions,” said the principal.
Mr Obuhatsa said this year, the sector had been hit by calamities including floods that disrupted the education calendar.
The Education calendar was disrupted early this year following heavy floods which caused havoc in the country killing over 100 people and displacing thousands of others pushing the state to extend Terms 2 and 3 dates.
Initially, Basic Education institutions including Early Childhood Development Education, Primary and Secondary schools were supposed to be reopened on April 29, 2024, for the Second Term according to this year’s education calendar, however, they were pushed to May 6, 2024, due to flooding.
Later, President Ruto announced the indefinite postponement of the opening dates of all schools in the country.
