Kuppet says strike still on

By Vitalis Kimutai

Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) has defied a call by the Government to end the ongoing teachers strike.

This follows collapsed talks between the union and the Government on Friday night that extended into midnight.

During the meeting, Kuppet national officials declined to sign a return to work formula crafted by the Government in which it had undertaken to immediately employ 18,060 teachers on permanent and pensionable terms and hire another 5,000 in January.

The union’s Secretary General Akello Misori, who was flanked by National Chairman Omboko Milemba and National Executive Board (NEB) officials, on Saturday announced that the strike by their members was still on.

Kuppet Secretary General Akello Misori addresses the press. He is flanked top union officials. Photo: mbugua kibera/standard

"The Government only addressed two of the three issues we had raised as a union, and a meeting to sort out the outstanding issues has been called on Monday between the ministries of Finance and Education, Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and Kuppet," Misori at a press conference in Nairobi.

He added: " I want to state categorically to our members and the public that our strike will remain in force until such a time that we have arrived at an agreement with the Government."

Misori, however, said the union supported the plan by the Government to employ more teachers and the undertaking to pay teachers promoted to job groups L, M, N and P two years ago their salary arrears.

"We did not arrive at any agreement on the harmonisation of house and commuter allowances for teachers and the strike shall continue until the matter is addressed," Misori said.

Omboko called on teachers in public schools and tutors in middle level colleges not to go back to class until advised otherwise.

"When the issues are addressed, the National Governing Council (NGC) will meet to make the position known and possibly call off the strike, but before then, the fight continues," Omboko stated.

The officials said the Government had continued to ignore the plight of teachers despite the hard economic times that had negatively impacted on the purchasing power.