Keep off illicit liquor, teachers’ union warns staff in Uasin Gishu

The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) officials in Uasin Gishu County have advised teachers against irregular alcohol consumption after two of their members died after taking illicit liquor.

Wareng Knut executive secretary John Boor said it is unfortunate that teachers had to succumb to the killer brew, which has so far claimed 14 lives.

He revealed that besides the two teachers, a number has been treated and discharged, another is currently visually impaired due to the drink effects while one is at Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Reale hospital in Eldoret.

“The adulterated drink has claimed the lives of our dedicated teachers who provided service to the education fraternity, it is important for them to desist from the killer drink,” he said.

Boor put the Government in a spot for continued deaths due to adulterated drinks in the region saying their laxity has robbed the lives of influential individuals an incident which could have been avoided.

“Kenya Bureau of Standards and NACADA ought to play an integral role in ensuring no lives are lost, they should not be seen in the media doing damage control on alcohol issues while the public continue to suffer,” he said.

He said security officials ought to intensify raids at all major alcohol selling joints to secure more lives from being lost to the illicit drinks. “Blame games have to end and a proper structures on how to remove adulterated drinks from the market adopted because the public expect assurance from the government on what they consume is good,” he added.

Boor called on county governments to make use of the Alcohol drinks Act and charge those responsible for the deaths of innocent citizens.

He said the union has a programme that provides teachers who are victims of the alcoholic consumption to undergo rehabilitation in a bid to shun from the vice.