Teachers in North Rift Announce Strike Starting Wednesday
Classes in six counties in the North Rift region are set to stop on Wednesday, February 5, as teachers prepare to go on strike over ongoing issues with accessing healthcare.
The teachers are protesting the limited access to medical services, which has left many unable to receive treatment at their chosen health facilities.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has been given 24 hours to address the concerns raised by the teachers, or else the protest action will commence.
The unions, including the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), claim that teachers are being denied access to necessary healthcare after their insurance provider, Minet, reduced the number of healthcare facilities available to them.
The teachers are frustrated by this situation, as they are now only able to access medical care at facilities that lack adequate equipment and do not meet the standards required of Level 4 and Level 5 hospitals. This, they say, could compromise the quality of care they receive, leaving them vulnerable.
According to the unions, the teachers are baffled by the decision to withdraw services from key medical centers, and they demand the immediate removal of these restrictions.
Paul Biwot, a KUPPET official from Elgeyo Marakwet, stated, “We have instructed our members that if the Teachers Service Commission does not lift the suspension, no teacher will attend class starting Wednesday, February 5. We cannot allow teachers to be forced to rely on just one healthcare facility.
This will worsen their health, as overcrowding in a small area will only exacerbate the situation.”
On Monday, hundreds of teachers, led by representatives from KNUT and KUPPET, marched to the Minet offices in Eldoret, North Rift, to demand a resolution to the healthcare crisis that has had a particularly negative impact on teachers with chronic conditions.
The teachers voiced their concerns over the withdrawal of services, emphasizing the difficulties they have faced as a result.
“We have teachers with chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, who can no longer visit their regular doctors due to these arbitrary restrictions imposed by our insurance provider,” said Rose Cheboi, the Uasin Gishu Women Representative. She added, “The government introduced this insurance to meet our healthcare needs, but the monopolistic approach being enforced by Makilu and Minet is something we completely reject.”
This strike comes at a time when the government is implementing a new healthcare system called the Social Health Authority (SHA). Last week, the government announced that parents must ensure their school-going children are registered with SHA by February 28.
To facilitate this, parents have been accompanying their children to school for the registration process, which requires travel to schools across the country to meet the government’s deadline.
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