Former Education cabinet secretary Ezekiel Machogu on Monday, August 19, 2024, officially handed over the ministry to the new CS Julius Ogamba at Jogoo House.
In a brief ceremony, at the Ministry of Education headquarters, Machogu handed the reigns to his former running mate in the unsuccessful bid for the Kisii gubernatorial seat.
“Former Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu today officially handed over to his successor, Julius Migos Ogamba, at Jogoo House, Nairobi. Present were PS Basic Education Dr. Belio Kipsang, PS TVET Esther Muoria and PS Higher Education & Research Beatrice Inyangala,” the ministry noted in a statement.
Machogu ran on a UDA party ticket with Ogamba as his potential deputy before losing to ODM’s Simba Arati.
Ogamba would be picked to head the Kenya electricity generating company (KenGen) in 2023 from where he took over from the former Chief of Defence Forces Samson Mwathethe who had been appointed by former president Uhuru Kenyatta.
With a spectacular curriculum vitae, Ogamba also boasts over 30 years of legal practice where he represented different corporate clientele and individuals.
Ogamba’s uphill task
However, Ogamba takes over the Ministry of Education at a tumultuous time when both the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) have promised to down their tools ahead of the reopening of schools on August 26, 2024.
KUPPET secretary general Akello Misori had informed teachers to keep away from school over the failure of the government to implement the second phase of the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
The second phase was to be effected in July, but teachers are yet to see the changes.
“We have no option, we know it would be very unfortunate for our children but the strike is on.’’
The other issues at stake are the employment of 46,000 Junior Secondary interns on permanent and pensionable terms, promotion of 130,000 teachers and the addressing of reports that the TSC fails to remit loan and NSSF deductions from teachers.
Ogamba faces an uphill task of averting the strike which could potentially hamper the end-year exams for 2024, both at primary and secondary levels of education.
On August 13, 2024, Labour and Social Protection cabinet secretary Alfred Mutua met with the KNUT officials over the looming strike.
Mutua assured the teachers that despite the austerity measures by the government, which were occasioned by the withdrawal of the contentious Finance Bill 2024, he would consult with the various state actors to ensure learning was not affected and that the issues were addressed.
