Category TSC News

The Teachers Service Commission has been asked not to remit teachers’ loan deductions to banks.

This is in line with the government’s plea for leniency from lenders in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers said several financial institutions are yet to provide customers with reprieves on loan repayments.

Many teachers’ payslips are heavily deducted to settle various loans with banks and other financial institutions, and this leaves them with so little at the end of the month, said Akello Misori, the Kuppet secretary-general.
Mr Misori said whereas the little teachers got after deductions could previously sustain them under normal circumstances, the amount is no longer tenable under the prevailing times.

In a letter to TSC Chief Executive Nancy Macharia, Kuppet now wants the employer to inform financial institutions that it shall not be remitting teachers’ deductions.

«We urge the commission to withhold deductions for teachers’ loans and liaise with financial institutions on the same on behalf of teachers,» said Misori.

He said Kuppet is not able to state with certainty the extent of compliance with the appeal for leniency on loans, and asked TSC to intervene.

«Some banks are dragging their feet on implementing the directive, or creating unnecessary means-tests on a policy that should benefit all workers,» said Misori in a letter dated April 14.

He said the policy directive to cushion workers applies to all loans that were running at the time of the declaration.
This was aimed at boosting efforts to cushion families and businesses from the effects of reduced business activity during the coronavirus crisis.

Kuppet said only a handful of financial institutions have offered various reprieves, from outright loan holidays to the suspension of the levying of interest. The union also said only a few financial institutions have communicated with account holders on the same.

Misori said with schools closed, many teachers are currently far away from their bank branches and are unable to make individual applications for relief.

The Teachers Service Commission is banking on the support of Northern Kenya communities to ensure employees posted there are safe.

The commission will also engage other stakeholders to ensure learning is not disrupted for thousands of children because the lives of teachers are threatened.

Non-local teachers working in Mandera, Garissa and Wajir counties have been the targets of attack by al Shabaab militia with several killed and others injured.

Three teachers were killed in a suspected Shabaab attack in Kamuthe in Garissa, in a pre-dawn attack on January 13.
The attack led to the transfer of 2,340 non-local teachers from the county.

The situation was so bad that TSC boss Nancy Macharia on February 26 said they would not post teachers to Northeastern if the insecurity situation was not fixed.

But in its audit report of the first year of the 2019-23 strategic plan, the commission seems to have softened its stance.

TSC will enhance collaboration with local communities and government agencies to address insecurity in certain parts of the country, the report signed by chairperson Lydia Nzomo reads.

Members of Parliament from Northeastern failed to agree with ministry officials on how to remedy the withdrawal of the teachers.

The situation caused a learning crisis with students attending classes with no teachers to teach them.

The MPs protested that the mass transfer of teachers was inconsiderate, impulsive and discriminatory.

They also demanded to have locals enrolled in teacher training colleges with lower entry requirements and then posted to local schools following the staff crunch.

The teachers are serving them and communities should work with them for their children to be educated, commission communications head Beatrice Wababu said Tuesday.
The commission

said the communities should provide the first line of security to people serving them and other Kenyans.

The killings are only targeting teachers and not other professionals such as doctors and nurses. It shows clearly that some locals might be involved, she said.

The commission said it will encourage residents from the region to join the teaching profession.

We will talk with the communities so that those people who get C+ are encouraged to join teaching, TSC said.

In the year under review, TSC hired 13,993 teachers. Some 1,364 were posted to Wajir, Garissa, and Mandera to enhance equity. Another 5,906 teachers were promoted to various grades.