KUPPET Machakos Vice Chairperson Yvonne Musyoka speaking during the Kathiani Teachers Welfare Association (KAPPTEWA) Annual General Meeting held at Kathiani Boys High School. Photo by Virginia Siebela 
By Andrew Mbuva and Virginia Siebela
Machakos County teachers affiliated with the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) are demanding immediate clarification on the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed between the union and the government, citing irregular deductions from their payslips in the guise of loans.
The teachers, led by KUPPET Machakos Vice Chairperson Yvonne Musyoka, expressed outrage during the Kathiani Teachers Welfare Association (KAPPTEWA) Annual General Meeting held at Kathiani Boys High School, accusing KUPPET of acting beyond its mandate.
“Teachers want to hear nothing more but the outcomes of the CBA which we saw in the newspapers. Justice delayed is justice denied,” Musyoka said. “We cannot live on speculations yet teachers of this county have a Secretary General in office. We want to know how you negotiated for increments of 34 shillings, 39 shillings, and 1,029 shillings, only to turn around and deduct 400 shillings from our payslips.”
Musyoka further claimed that the deductions have not been transparent and accused the union of manipulating teachers’ payslips without consultation or consent.
“We are giving the Secretary General an ultimatum: come clean on the CBA and return the money deducted from teachers. This tendency of raping the teachers’ payslips must end. KUPPET is not a loan institution — we know the banks we owe.”
In a scathing rebuke, she likened the union’s actions to a deceptive leadership style, saying, “Uongozi wa Mtemi Bokono — unapatia watu pesa kwa mkono wa kulia na unachukua kwa mkono wa kushoto.” (The leadership of Chief Bokono gave with the right hand and took with the left.)
Musyoka also hinted at a larger political awakening among educators in the county. “We shall shape the leadership of this great county starting from the grassroots. Teachers are everywhere — and we will be heard.”
Other voices at the AGM echoed similar frustrations. George Mambo, an aspirant for the county KUPPET chairmanship, challenged the union's leadership to decentralize co-curricular activities like music, games, and drama from Machakos Central to other sub-counties.
“We also want a union that stands by its members, especially during legal challenges. A union that can hire lawyers to defend teachers in trouble. That’s the kind of vibrant KUPPET we need.”
Mambo sent a strong message to the current SG: “The ground is shaky. Bring us together before you exit office. Don’t leave us divided — we are one, we are teachers.”
Speakers at the event encouraged educators to join welfare associations like KAPPTEWA, arguing that such grassroots organizations provide real-time support and restore dignity among teachers.
The growing dissatisfaction signals possible political shifts within the county’s teachers’ leadership, with demands for transparency, accountability, and genuine representation now louder than ever.
