Teachers Service Commission (TSC) officials are in trouble after lawmakers accused them of favouring their areas in promotions.

TSC was further put on the spot for promoting about 5,291 tutors who had only served for six months.

MPs who sit in the Education committee, chaired by Tinderet MP Julius Melly, said documents tabled before them showed regions where some of the commissioners come from got more slots.

They cited Isiolo, which got 190 slots, Samburu Central (185) and Lamu West (202) slots as among the regions that were most favoured.

Others are Baringo Central with 163 slots, Ithanga/kakuzi (190), Hamisi (148), Keiyo North (169), Keiyo South (149) Kirinyaga East (126), Marakwet West (132), Nyahururu (139), Tana Delta (143) and Turkana Central (125).

The regions that got the lowest slots include Balambala (9), Bothai (5), Fafi (5), Diff (6) and Korondille (9).

Said Melly: “I had at one point been forced to intervene because members wanted to bring a censure motion against this commission because of this promotion thing. We are giving you seven days to address this issue once and for all.”

Igembe North MP Julius Taitumu said it is unacceptable that an area like Igembe Central and Meru County with high population of teachers got only 30 slots yet Isiolo with a population three times less, got more slots.

He said: “It is as if these promotions were shared by the commissioners. Just by looking at where somebody comes from visa- vie the promotions will clearly tell you what I am saying”

Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera said Lamu West got 202 slots yet Lugari constituency with 4,000 teachers got only 60 slots.

He said: “a quick analysis of their own data shows that areas where certain commissioners came from were favoured.”

Their sentiments came on the day the commissioners and TSC Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia also found themselves in the soup for lowering the qualification for promotion from three years to six months, on the basis that they did not get applicants for the said position from certain regions.

Flexible approach

Macharia said that to ensure no county was disadvantaged, the commission adopted a flexible approach where the time frame was reduced.

For instance, she said, that in grade D3(Principal), analysis showed there were no adequate teachers in grade D2 who had served for the requisite three year period.

For the Deputy Principal III (D1) position, she said that the xommission waived the three-year requirement for 18 counties including Migori, Narok, Busia, Bomet, Homabay, Kwale, Mandera among others.

She said: “The commission’s decision was also informed by the need to minimise delocalisation of teachers, enabling them to serve within their localities where possible. As a result of the waiver a total of 5,291 teachers who had not served for at least three years in their grades were promoted.”

In terms of ethnicity, Macharia disclosed that out of the 25,252 teachers promoted, the Kikuyu got the highest (4,668), followed by Kalenjin (4,003), Luhya (3,148), Luo (2,388), Kamba (2,280), Meru (1,562) and Mijikenda (998).

The ethnic groups that got the lowest slots include Njemps (1), Murelle (2), Dasnach-Shangil (4), Gosha (4), and Sakuye and Bonana (7 slots each).

But Melly and committee members told off the commission, insisting that there are teachers who have worked for more than ten years without promotion.