Kenya University Staff Union (KUSU) has threatened to challenge the findings of the Working Party Education Reform, the task force formed to review the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).
KUSU argued that President William Ruto erred by sidelining them while forming the 49-member task force led by Professor Raphael Munavu.
Defending their decision to challenge the findings, KUSU officials noted that the head of state violated the public participation requirement as stipulated by the Constitution.
“As a union, we want to remind President Ruto that there is no way he can form such a team to address matters of education and leave out key stakeholders like us,” KUSU secretary general, Charles Mukhwaya lamented.
The Kenya Universities Staff Union (Kusu) secretary general Charles Mukhwaya addresses journalists in Nakuru City on October 1, 2022.
“As a union, we feel the government of President Ruto did not do any due diligence. The government did not respect the Constitution which clearly dictates that he ought to have involved the public. We as key stakeholders in education expected relevant unions to be represented in the task force,” he added.
Mukhwaya complained that other than KUSU, the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) were also cast aside.
The inclusion of vice chancellors, Stephen Kiama of the University of Nairobi (UoN) and Paul Wainaina of Kenyatta University, KUSU argued, was not enough to convince the union that tertiary tutors were represented.
They argued that vice chancellors were accused of mismanaging institutions and thus cannot purport to represent their juniors.
He thus urged Ruto to act swiftly and convince them against challenging the task force and its finding in court.
Ruto gazetted the Working Party Education Reform on Friday, September 30, paving the way for CBC review. Among the key areas, he tasked the team to evaluate, included the examination system, transition structures and teachers’ deployment.
He argued that the findings would be implemented to make CBC more affordable and accessible to all students.
Study all laws governing the tertiary education subsector and make recommendations for review of these legislations to streamline effectiveness and efficiency in the subsector,” the Gazette Notice read in part.
“Review and recommend legislation to facilitate the amalgamation of HELB, TVET and University Funding Boards with a view of harmonizing and merging all tertiary education funding entities,” the head of state directed.
