Teachers in insecure regions now want guns, para-military training

The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has called on the government to offer para-military training for teachers working in insecure pockets around the country and issue them with guns to enhance their security.

Speaking in Isiolo during this year’s Annual General Assembly, KUPPET officials who joined teachers from Isiolo county to mark the day said that teachers were continually being victimized and intimidated by the Teachers’ Service Commission to continue working in dangerous areas.

As a result, Edward Obwocha who is the Union’s National Secretary rallied the teachers in calling for the issuance of guns and the teachers agreed together in Unison.

Obwocha said that a teacher cannot protect him or herself with a piece of chalk when attackers are confronting them with guns.

He noted that teachers should not be interdicted when they flee from areas where their lives are under threat, condemning the recent move by the Teachers’ Service Commission to interdict teachers who fled from areas in Northern Kenya where their lives were in constant danger. He said that teachers should get paramilitary training and be given guns to protect themselves.

Moses Kimwere, the KUPPET Executive Secretary for Isiolo supported the proposals for teachers to be issued with guns, adding that paramilitary training from special forces should also be a consideration.

Gilbert Wafula, the union’s Isiolo chairman said that teachers working in Isiolo in areas like Bassa, Oldonyiro, Merti, Sericho, and Garbatula should be issued with guns because the police have previously shown that they cannot protect them.

JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS

At the same time, KUPPET Deputy Secretary General Moses Nthurima called for changes in Junior Secondary Schools in order to ensure that learning was actually taking place there. Nthurima said that the teacher-to-learner ratio in some schools was not promotional to the number of learning areas, with only two teachers handling up to 14 subjects, some that they are not even conversant with.

He said that JSS should be domiciled in the high schools, and learners go there as day-scholars because high schools have the resources to provide learners with quality education.

He said that teachers in primary schools lacked the capacity to school learners in JSS in different learning areas.

His sentiments were also echoed by Fredrick Meme the vice chairperson Isiolo branch who said that JSS institutions do not have enough staff in relation to the number of subjects.

Meme called on the government to consider increasing the number of staff so that learners can get quality education.

TEACHERS’ REMUNERATION

Moses Kimwere also asserted that teachers are not getting adequate facilitation from the government while supervising and marking exams.

He said that the remuneration was not adequate since many teachers had to travel long distances to supervise the national exams, and asked the government to raise the amount paid to teachers for the crucial exercise.