Knut won’t go on strike, dares Kuppet to call for strike

BOMET COUNTY: The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) has accused its rival union Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) of trying to scuttle the salary negotiation between the teachers and the government.

Knut Secretary General Wilson Sossion said as a union they have no intention of calling for a strike adding that they will allow the candidates to first sit for the national examination.

Speaking in Bomet Thursday Sossion accused Kuppet chairman Omboko Milemba of trying to portray to the public that there has been a stalemate.

"Kuppet is out to scuttle the whole process but we are assuring our members that there is no stalemate yet. The government has called for more time and we have given them till the 24th of this month," said Sossion who was accompanied by Bomet Knut Executive Secretary Malel Langat.

He stated that they will not be leaving the negotiation table but maintained that they will continue pilling pressure on the government so as to increase salaries for teachers.

"We want to assure the candidates and the public that we will not disrupt the examination but rather we shall allow our members to continue manning the exam as we engage the government," said Sossion.

He added that parents and the candidates have invested so much and it will be unfair for teachers to deny them a chance to sit for the exam.

"We are in control of the negotiation and we are asking our members to be patient with us as we allow the government enough time to consult," he said.

He revealed that Milemba is not a member to the negotiation committee and told him to stop commenting on the same. He laughed off threats by Kuppet that they will call for job boycott because the government has been unwilling to table a proposal for the teachers.

"If Kuppet Secretary General Akello Misori, who is a member of the committee, wants to pull out then we shall forward a replacement from our side on Monday. We are happy with the correspondence between the TSC and treasury," he said.