Mudavadi blames Uhuru on teachers strike

UDF leader Musalia Mudavadi blames President Uhuru Kenyatta on teachers strike

Updated Sunday, June 30th 2013 at 11:00 GMT +3

By Geoffrey Mosoku

NAIROBI, KENYA: United Democratic Party ( UDF) party leader Musalia Mudavadi has told President Uhuru Kenyatta to take personal charge and save the country from the bludgeoning national crisis in education sector.

Breaking silence on national issues since the general elections, the UDF leader said it is no longer tenable for the president to delegate responsibility but that he should step in to lead the dialogue to rescue the country from drowning in education chaos following a nationwide strike which enters its fifth day.

 “The standoff in the education sector is a national emergency and it is not enough for the president to call for dialogue about it. I ask President Uhuru to take personal charge and return the sector to normalcy”, Mudavadi said.

Stating that education was disrupted in a similar strike last year, because of the elections and now with current strikes by teachers, Mudavadi said the president does not have the luxury of time to delegate the solution to endless suffering of children and parents to unwilling institutions.

Speaking in the presence of the Education Cabinet Secretary Prof. Jacob Kaimenyi immediately the president’s condolence message had been read by the Meru County Commissioner at the burial of former National Bank Managing Director Reuben Marambii on Saturday, Mudavadi warned against flattery on the strike predicament by those in charge.

“You have seen egos; fawning and brinkmanship play out instead of concerned intervention to solve the crisis. It is not enough to delegate to the same people who worry more about how important they and their offices are”, he said cautioning that the unrest may spiral out of hand.

Mudavadi said he had kept true to the nickname M’Mukiri (gentle one) by the Meru community after elections out national interest to allow the new administration to settle down, but this did not mean he was not concerned with what was going on.

“A friend in deed is one who tells you truth. I conceded defeat to create calm and avoid protracted contests and even a post-election MOU to help stabilise transition,” the  former Deputy Prime Minister added.

“Teachers have a right to lawfully strike and it is unconstitutional to deny them salaries for exercising that right”, he told an audience that included retired Secretary to Cabinet and Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura, Meru Senator Kiraitu Murungi and several former and current MPs.

Eulogising that the country needed men of honour, Mudavadi said the late Marambii was among few public servants of integrity to whom Kenyans are indebted.

“As Finance Minister in 1993, I recruited Marambii into Central Bank to help sort out the mess caused by the Goldenberg scandal leading to near collapse of our financial sector. I also went for his help to head a collapsing National Bank and he saved millions of Kenyans from loosing their deposits”, he said.