KNUT calls for immediate transfer of non-local teachers from insecure areas

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The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has called on the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to immediately transfer non-local teachers stationed in insecure border areas, citing escalating security threats.

The appeal follows the killing of a teacher and a local administrator in Hulugho Sub-County, Garissa County, earlier this week.

Stephen Musili, a teacher at Hulugho Primary School, was shot dead at dawn on Monday in an attack that also claimed the life of the area chief, Abdifatar Gani. The attack is suspected to have been carried out by Al-Shabaab militants.

Speaking to the press after the Garissa KNUT branch elections, KNUT officials led by Chief Officer John Gitari and newly elected Garissa KNUT Executive Secretary Abdirizack Hussein said the security of teachers must never be compromised.

Gitari said teachers’ safety was non-negotiable and called for the immediate redeployment of non-local teachers working in insecurity-prone areas, particularly along the Kenya–Somalia border.

“We are saying that all teachers who come from outside the region and are currently stationed in insecure areas, especially along the border with Somalia, must be immediately transferred, and TSC should deploy local teachers instead. We cannot compromise the security of a teacher under any circumstances,” Gitari said.

While acknowledging the swift response by the TSC following the incident, Gitari said the action came too late.

“Yes, we appreciate the TSC CEO. When the incident happened, she got in touch with our officers on the ground and action was taken. But that was action after the teacher was dead. We want action before a teacher is killed. Teachers are sacrificing a lot, and their security must be given priority,” he said.

Gitari further noted that many local teachers are graduating from teacher training colleges and urged the TSC to prioritise their posting to schools in high-risk border areas.

He emphasized the critical role teachers play in nation-building, calling on educators to remain steadfast despite the challenges.

“Teachers are the ones building the future of this country. You cannot build an economy with illiterate citizens. The only route to development is through education, and children can only be educated when teachers are safe,” he said.

On his part, Abdirizack questioned how both a teacher and an administrator could be killed in an area with a heavy security presence, warning that such incidents could cripple education in the region.

However, he urged teachers to remain united and resist attempts by militants to divide them along tribal or religious lines.

“We are brothers and sisters, and we will not accept to be divided along tribal or religious lines by terrorists,” Abdirizack said.

He also called on the TSC to utilize teacher training colleges in Garissa, Wajir, and Mandera, which have thousands of local trainees set to graduate in September.

“About 3,000 local teachers will be graduating from these colleges in September. We are asking TSC to deploy these local teachers to border areas and redeploy non-local teachers to safer schools away from the border,” he said.

The KNUT branch elections, which were supervised by the Ministry of Labour, saw all former officials re-elected for another five-year term through consensus.

Garissa County Director of Education Abdi Hamid said the government would continue working with all stakeholders to ensure learning is not disrupted in the region.

While expressing regret over the incident, Hamid assured that the government remains committed to guaranteeing the safety of all teachers, including those working in border areas.

On Friday, non-local teachers from Hulugho Sub-County also appealed to the TSC and the Ministry of Education to relocate them to safer areas.

Speaking to journalists in Garissa town, the teachers—who fled Hulugho after the attack—expressed frustration over what they described as delayed response by the TSC, nearly five days after the incident, despite longstanding security concerns in the area.

Led by Meshark Makwara of Hulugho Comprehensive School, the teachers also called for compassionate leave to allow them time to recover from the trauma as the commission considers their request for redeployment.

“We have been at the TSC offices in Garissa since Monday, but up to now we have not received clear communication on whether we will be transferred to safer stations or forced to return to Hulugho. As teachers from Hulugho Sub-County, we unanimously agreed that we will not go back because the area is extremely hostile and unsafe,” Makwara said.