Planned unions merger to cost Knut Sh20m

Knut’s Wilson Sossion and Mudzo Nzilli. (Photo:File/Standard)

By Augustine Oduor

Nairobi, Kenya: The planned merger between two rival teachers’ unions will cost Kenya National Union of Teachers Sh20 million, Knut Secretary General Wilson Sossion has said.

Sossion said convening a special sitting of the National Executive Council and Annual Delegates Conference is expensive but added that Knut is ready to spend the money.

“This is a worthy course because we must unite to champion teachers’ interest and help our members improve quality of education,” said Sossion.

He said Knut has set in motion plans towards a unified teachers’ umbrella body as was set out in an agreement signed between it and Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) in Lusaka, Zambia last month.

The conference was organised by Education International (EI), a global union federation of teachers’ trade unions.

It also emerged yesterday that EI spent up to Sh500,000 on every union members who attended the Lusaka meeting.

The Kenyan delegation to Zambia comprised Sossion, Kuppet’s National Chairman Omboko Milemba and Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Education Institutions, Hospitals and Allied Workers (Kudheiha) Secretary General Albert Obed.

“They paid our air ticket, hotel booking, out of pocket money and also produced conference material. We cannot travel all the way to Zambia to make decisions just to come and disown them,” said Sossion.

Sossion said Kuppet must not disown a document they prepared and signed.

“This is a serious matter and they should honour their commitment. Milemba cannot run away from his signature. We all want one voice to speak for teachers because we have always lost to Government during negotiations,” he said.

 Not me

The agreement signed by Milemba and Sossion requires sensitisation of top union leadership, branch executives and members of the union at various stages that will culminate in May to a new union.

Kuppet Thursday maintained that there was no such agreement and disowned any attempt to unite with Knut.

Milemba also denied signing such a document.

“We will not merge. We can only form a federation. Knut should not mislead teachers,” said Kuppet’s Secretary General Akelo Misori.

Sossion, however, said Milemba signed the document that committed Knut and Kuppet to merge and form one union by May.

“I signed for Knut and Milemba signed for Kuppet. It is wrong for them now to look back and deny the document,” said Sossion.