On Wednesday, most teachers in Machakos County stayed away from classrooms, defying a court order that temporarily suspended the national strike organized by the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet).
A survey by the media revealed that despite learners reporting to school, teachers were noticeably absent in various schools across the county.
This follows a temporary injunction by the Employment and Labour Relations Court on Tuesday, which halted the strike pending a decision on a case filed by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
However, some teachers expressed fear of potential reprisals from Kuppet's Machakos branch officials, who allegedly threatened to take action against any member who reported to work.
Led by branch Secretary General Musembi Katuku and Chairman Bernard Warui, Kuppet officials stormed Baptist Primary and Machakos Girls High schools on Wednesday. They accused teachers of being at work while their colleagues were on the streets fighting for their rights.
Katuku later confirmed to the media that 90 percent of schools in Machakos County had no teachers present, insisting that their strike would continue undeterred. He warned teachers who disobeyed their directives of severe consequences.
Katuku also stated that the branch had not received the court order directly but only read about it in the newspapers. "We are proceeding with our strike until we receive instructions from our national office. We are already consulting our lawyers regarding the court orders. We haven't seen the order ourselves, only in the newspapers," Katuku said.
He added, "No teachers are in class; we are monitoring. Ninety percent of schools in Machakos have no teachers. We urge parents to keep their children at home because the strike is ongoing. There should be no board meetings in schools either."
At Baptist Primary, Kuppet members attempted to release students from their classrooms, but police intervened, ordering the officials to leave the premises and instructing students to return to class. Similarly, at Machakos Girls High School, teachers were denied entry.
Some parents, who were bringing their daughters to school, were caught in the commotion. Those driving had to wait as Kuppet officials clashed with security guards and police before the situation was resolved.
A few Kuppet officials were eventually allowed into the school, where they met with Principal Judy David outside her office. The officials accused David of denying her teachers the right to participate in the strike, a claim she denied.
"I'm the only one here as the principal, receiving the girls reporting today. The teachers are not present, and the girls can't be left unattended. I am responsible as an administrator. Feel free to check the school and see if there are any teachers," David responded.
Warui interrupted, reminding her that school heads are major beneficiaries of the strike. "When we fight for the CBA, we fight for all teachers in this country. The greatest beneficiaries are principals and administrators. You are also a Kuppet member," Warui told David.
The principal acknowledged her membership in Kuppet but told the striking teachers and officials that they wouldn't achieve much by shouting and storming schools.
Katuku, however, emphasized that the strike would continue until their demands were met. "Until the government listens to our demands, there will be no schools in Kenya. The Treasury CS must allocate Sh10.8 billion to hire Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers. We need payments for the second phase of the CBA, a superior medical cover, and we reject third-party deductions from our salaries," he stated.
He further argued that teachers deserve promotions, highlighting that some schools have been without principals and deputies for over 15 years due to stagnated promotions.