MUHALYA: TSC remains stable as acting leadership maintains order, defying claims of crisis

In recent months, a growing public narrative has suggested that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) urgently requires a substantive Chief Executive Officer.

Court petitions, commentaries, and social media debates have framed the absence of a permanent appointment as a crisis that demands immediate resolution.

But a closer look at the Commission’s operations tells a more nuanced story.

For the past seven months, Eveleen Mitei has served as Acting CEO, overseeing an institution responsible for more than 400,000 teachers and millions of learners across the country.

In a system of this scale, instability tends to show quickly. Delayed salaries, payroll confusion, stalled promotions, or breakdowns in communication often signal administrative strain.

So far, those warning signs have not materialised. Teachers continue to receive salaries on time. Statutory deductions and loan remittances have proceeded without interruption.

While payroll consistency may appear routine, it remains one of the most critical indicators of institutional stability, given the financial pressures many educators face.

On this front, the Commission has remained steady.

At the same time, the TSC has managed several significant transitions.

Among them is the migration of teachers’ medical cover from Minet to the Social Health Authority (SHA), a complex process that could easily have triggered confusion or disputes.

Instead, the shift was largely smooth, with minimal complaints or disruptions reported. Progress has also continued on the implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which directly affects teachers’ welfare and working conditions.

Negotiations, consultations, and communication with staff have moved forward, suggesting continuity rather than paralysis.

Internally, stakeholders report improved engagement between headquarters, field officers, and external partners.

While not without challenges, the overall picture is of an institution functioning within expected parameters, not one in administrative free fall. This does not mean concerns about leadership are misplaced.

A substantive CEO provides clarity, long-term direction, and policy certainty—elements important for any public body.

Those pushing for a permanent appointment argue that acting positions are, by nature, temporary and can limit decisive planning.

Their calls reflect legitimate governance principles. However, timing also matters.

Parliament is currently reviewing the TSC Act through the proposed TSC Bill 2025, which seeks to reform the Commission’s structure and oversight framework. If enacted, these changes could affect reporting lines and responsibilities at the top.

Appointing a substantive CEO under the current framework, only for the legal structure to change shortly after, may create avoidable disruptions or misalignment.

From this perspective, a short period of continuity could allow the new legal framework to take shape before a permanent appointment is made.

Mitei’s professional background may also explain the relatively calm tenure. Having begun her career as a classroom teacher and rising through the ranks, she brings institutional memory and familiarity with the day-to-day realities facing educators.

That experience appears to have helped maintain operational focus during this interim period. Still, the conversation should not be reduced to personalities.

The issue is institutional stability, not individuals. Repeated court battles and public pressure risk distracting the Commission from its core mandate: serving teachers and learners.

The evidence so far suggests that the TSC is functioning. Salaries are paid. Reforms are progressing. Systems remain intact.

That reality tempers the language of crisis that has dominated public debate. Ultimately, the question is not whether the Commission needs a substantive CEO—it does—but whether urgency should outweigh strategy. In a period of legal review and ongoing reforms, patience may offer a more stable path than haste.

For now, the Commission appears to be operating without alarm.

Careful planning, rather than pressure, may better serve both teachers and the institution in the long term.

Hillary Muhalya is an educationist based in the North Rift