By Martin Mutua
Teachers in Kakamega County have vowed that they would paralyse learning in schools from next month if the Government fails to address their grievances.
Speaking during their Annual General Meeting in Kakamega, they accused the Government of neglecting them.
They claimed that teachers were the worst paid compared to other civil servants.
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) national assistant secretary Mudzo Muhenderwa, who spoke on behalf of the national secretary Okute Osiany, said the Government had ignored teachers’ grievances for decades. Muhenderwa said that teachers were justified to go on strike because the salaries they earned were not commensurate to services they rendered.
He said that most teachers still live below the poverty line as a result of their meagre earnings.
“It’s unfortunate that most of our teachers live below a dollar a day because of poor pay,” said Muhenderwa.
He pointed out that inflation had worsened things for teachers.
Muhenderwa further claimed that virtually all teachers had loans because their salaries were too meagre to sustain them.
He added that the 300 per cent increment that teachers were demanding would help them lead “a comfortable lives like the other civil servants”.
Under the carpet
He told the Government to brace itself for fiercest strike ever, coming at a time students were preparing for national examinations.
The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers have also reaffirmed is support for the strike.
Kakamega County Chairman Johnston Wabuti said teachers’ issues had been swept under the carpet for long and the strike would serve as a wake up call for the Government.
“It is ridiculous to neglect teachers and expect education standards to soar in this country,” said Wabuti.
