The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) has opposed the recently published promotion list by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), citing unfair distribution that disadvantages counties with high number of teachers. 

Speaking at a press conference in Nairobi, Kuppet Secretary General Moses Nthurima (inset) and National Executive Board members expressed disappointment in the manner in which the 25,252 promotions were allocated.  

According to the union, the TSC distributed the positions equally across all counties, failing to consider disparities in the number of teachers per region. 

“The TSC has equalised promotions across counties, yet some counties have over 11,000 teachers while others have barely 1,000. This means that populous counties such as Kiambu and Kakamega have been unfairly treated by receiving the same number of opportunities as less populated counties,” Nthurima stated. 

Nthurima explained that if this is implemented teachers in smaller counties will be highly favoured while their counterparts in densely populated counties continue to pile up merit lists due to high competition among qualified candidates. 

The union argues that the TSC has abandoned its previous pro-rata policy, which ensured that promotion slots were allocated proportionally based on the number of teachers in each county. Kuppet has called on the commission to revise the list to reflect fairness and equity. 

“The Kuppet National Executive Board has received numerous complaints from teachers who feel unfairly left out of the just-concluded 2024/2025 promotions,” Nthurima said  

The union also raised concerns that the TSC is no longer independent, alleging that political interference may have influenced the promotion process. 

“If the commission can be pressured into skewing promotions in favour of some regions, then it is no longer independent. This is a major concern for us, and we demand that the list be reviewed immediately to ensure meritocracy and fairness,” Nthurima added.