Knut accuses county staff of conning schools

A teachers union has accused the Ministry of Education county staff and a parents’ association of conniving to swindle tutors’ money under the pretext of schools safety training.

Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary General Wilson Sossion said the ministry’s County Directors of Education (CDEs) are working closely with the Kenya National Parents Association (KNPA) to mint millions from primary teachers by conducting ‘illegal’ schools safety trainings.

He said the Musau Ndunda-led parents association is ‘running across the counties and forcing teachers’ to attend schools safety trainings at a cost of Sh2,000.

Sossion also took a swipe at the ministry’s CDEs for allowing Ndunda to “suck them into his dirty deals of defrauding teachers”. “Who has mandated Ndunda to conduct these trainings? This is not his work. Or is it a syndicate?” posed Sossion. He said Ndunda has even moved to court to sue two Knut branch officials for asking teachers not to attend one of the meetings.

A letter written by Sossion to Education Cabinet Secretary Prof Jacob Kaimenyi asks the CS to clarify Ndunda’s role and call for ‘immediate stoppage’ of his activities.

Attempts to get Kaimenyi and his PS Dr Bellio Kipsang to respond were futile as their calls went unanswered. Short text messages sent to their cell phones were also not answered by the time of going to press.

Ndunda, however, said the trainings are legal and that the ministry authorised them. “This was a programme of 2012/2013 and we had authority letter from the ministry,” he said.