Teachers who will be seeking to join the National Executive Board (NEB) of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) will now be forced to pay between KSh300,000 to KSh500,000 as nomination fee.
Sources have however hinted that a good number of union officials and members who are teachers are up in arms with the Union having sent several petitions to the Registrar of Trade Unions contesting for the changes and the registration of the new amendments.
This is after some of the controversial clauses sailed through during the high tense Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) which was held in Vihiga characterized with violence and a section of delegates being blocked from entering the venue. And some delegates revealing that hired goons were used to chase out any delegate who would talk to challenge the amendments.
According to the amendments which Education News has seen, the nomination fee for the Secretary General, National Chairman, and National Treasurer was raised to KSh500,000; while that of Deputy Secretary General, National Vice Chairman, National Organizing Secretary, National Gender Secretary, National Secretary Secondary, National Secretary Tertiary, and National Assistant Treasurer was raised to KSh300,000.
Currently, teachers seeking to run for any National (mentioned) seats pay a flat rate KSh250,000; while for branch Executive Secretary pay KSh50,000 as other branch offices part with KSh10,000.However, if the amendments will be registered by the Registrar of Trade Unions, for one to run for branch Executive Secretary will now pay a whooping KSh200,000 from the current fee of KSh50,000 while branch Chairman and Treasurer seats will attract a nomination fee of KSh100,000 from KSh10,000.
Other branch seats notably Vice-chairman, Assistant Secretary, Vice Treasurer, Organizing Secretary, Gender Secretary, Secretary Secondary, and Secretary Tertiary will attract a nomination fee of KSh50,000 from the current Ksh10,000 rate.
A number of branch officials who talk to Education News stated that the move is meant to bar those branch officials who are seen as a threat to the union top brass and silence the rising opposition in the union, which has recently seen the ongoing leadership wrangles splitting the union down the middle.
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It is also said by those in the know that the changes are part of the tactics to weaken the group that has recently emerged which support the candidature of the union National Assistant Treasurer Ronald Tonui, who was also blocked from entering the ADC venue in Vihiga, and who is also seen as a possible candidate to challenge the union Secretary General Akelo Misori during KUPPET National Election in 2026; though Tonui himself hasn’t publicly declared the interest to run for the seat.
Another amendment that was also passed during the high tense ADC is the removal of the retirement age limit which is currently pegged at 60 years. This was through introducing a new clause in the amendments under the union’s objectives which disallow anyone from being discriminated against on the basis of sex, race, tribe, age or religion.
The amendments have also expanded the union NEB from the current 10 officials to 14 by introducing new seats for first, second, and third Assistant National Gender Secretaries, and that for Assistant National Secretary Junior Secondary; while at the same time introducing 8 Regional Councils which will be funded by their respective branches under them.
Unlike now where each county branch sends a flat rate of 10 delegates for the ADC, in the new amendments, each county branch shall send 14 delegates representing between 1 – 300 members to the ADC.
Sources have however hinted that a good number of union officials and members who are teachers have sent several petitions to the Registrar of Trade Union contesting for the changes and the registration of the new amendments.
By Roy Hezron
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