Teachers Service Commission (TSC) Secretary and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Nancy Macharia has announced her retirement early next year, which will bring an end of her 10-year tenure at the Commission’s helm which has attracted praises and criticism in equal measures.
Dr. Macharia, 62, rose to the helm of TSC Secretary and CEO after taking over from Gabriel Lengoiboni who retired on June 30, 2015 in a competitive recruitment process in May 2015 in a post that then attracted over 60 applicants from which four were shortlisted. Her five-year contract was further extended in June 2020.
Speaking during the 64th Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) yesterday in Mombasa, Dr. Macharia appreciated the union for utmost professionalism with which it had dealt with her over the last nine years.
“As I approach the tail-end of my 10-year service as Secretary and CEO of the TSC, I can only look back with an incredible tinge of satisfaction over our enviable work relationship in office. I wish you the very best as you work to elevate the teaching profession to even higher standards,” she said.
Early this year, an insider at the Commission who spoke to Education News in confidentiality indicated that Dr. Macharia will proceed for terminal leave in March next year, pending her official retirement in June.
Dr. Macharia who holds doctorate degree, a Master of Education (Policy and Management) degree from Bristol University, UK and a Bachelor of Education degree in English/Literature from Kenyatta University started her career with the TSC as an assistant teacher and has worked in the education sector for more than 28 years.
She worked as a teacher at Kahuhia Girls’ Secondary in Murang’a, where she taught for five years before getting promoted to the rank of deputy principal at Kianderi Girls’ Secondary in Murang’a County in 1992.
During her tenure at the Commission she introduced the infamous delocalization policy which was strongly opposed by teacher unions, the 2018 Career Progression Guidelines (CPG) for promotion of teachers which replaced the Schemes of Services, and also worked round the clock to digitize a number teacher services at the Commission.
Despite the criticism Dr. Macharia is credited for the signing of the first Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the government and teachers, through their unions, KNUT and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET); the 2016-2021 CBA.
The CBA, which was implemented in four phases, costed the government a whopping Ksh54 billion, which saw the salaries of teachers, increase steadily for the first time in history.
The Commission working together with KNUT and other stakeholders has retooled over 300,000 teachers to equip them with the requisite content, skills, competences, values and attitudes to implement the new curriculum and Assessment.
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This year High Court dismissed a petition seeking her removal from office over corruption allegations in a petition filed by activist Francis Owino, he had accused Dr. Macharia of violating Chapter Six of the Constitution through gross misappropriation and misuse of public funds amounting to over Ksh3 billion for salaries.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Lawrence Mugambi, the court found that the petition filed by the activist was premature.
The judge citing a lack of sufficient evidence to support the allegations against the TSC boss necessary for the court to determine that she is unfit to hold public office
In 2014 Dr. Macharia was awarded the Order of Grand Warrior by former President Uhuru Kenyatta for her contribution to development in and outside her workplace.
Other occupants of the office over the years include Jesse Muhoro (1967 to 1974), James Kamunge (1974 to 1977), Duncan Mwangi (1978 to 1980), Joseph Lijembe (1980 to 1982), Mr Jackson Kang’ali (1982 to 1998), Benjamin Sogomo (1998 to 2003), James Ongwae (2003 to 2004) and Lengoiboni (2004-2015).
By Obegi Malack
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