TSC CEO Summoned After Banning Teacher for Life
TSC CEO Summoned After Banning Teacher for Life
In response to a teacher who was given a life ban after being accused of defiling a student, members of parliament called Nancy Macharia, the chief executive officer of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), on Wednesday.
In an appearance before the Public Petitions Committee of the National Assembly, chaired by Taita Taveta MP Bwire Okano, Macharia supported the Commission’s ruling, claiming that it was within its authority to shield students from sexual assault in any form.
She narrated how the incident unfolded, adding that the High Court acquitted the teacher as the evidence presented before the judge was circumstantial.
The TSC boss noted that the Commission, however, carried out its independent investigations, and found the teacher guilty of the accusations and proceeded to deregister and dismiss him.
In accordance with Section 31 of the TSC Act, which states that an application to the Register of Teachers will be evaluated after 18 months from the date of removal, the TSC reinstated the instructor following additional review.
However, the instructor was given a life ban by the TSC, which meant he could work elsewhere in the world but not in Kenya.
Macharia added that the teacher was taken through a procedural disciplinary process before the ban was issued.
During the session, the MPs questioned whether the Commission could prove if the minor’s accusations were true and based on actual evidence.
Taita Taveta MP Bwire Okano, noted that the minor had lied that she wasn’t involved with any other sexual partners, as a DNA test carried on the newborn baby proved that the teacher did not sire it.
“What if the minor lied about the situation?” Okano posed.Macharia, in her defence, argued that it’s the Commission’s responsibility to protect minors and hold teachers accountable.
The criminal court’s rulings were unable to save an employment contract that had unavoidably collapsed under the given circumstances. Part of the statement said, “The TSC is absolved of any ties to follow the court’s decision, as employers aren’t bound by criminal court findings.”
