Education stakeholders in Tharaka-Nithi County have asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to sack Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha for insulting and publicly humiliating Uasin Gishu County Director of Education Dr Gitonga Mbaka.
In a clip that has since gone viral, Prof Magoha can be seen making an impromptu visit at Langas Primary School in Eldoret.
He appears visibly angry and is wildly gesticulating at Dr Mbaka, whom he calls a “complete fool” in the full glare of cameras, teachers and other officials.
Now Kenya National Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) officials from Tharaka-Nithi, where Dr Mbaka hails from, have warned Prof Magoha to apologise or risk the wrath of attracting Meru curses.
“Prof Magoha must also apologise to the Ameru Council of Elders for insulting Dr Mbaka who comes from Tharaka-Nithi County and is a member of the council,” said Kuppet executive secretary Patrick Gitonga in Chuka town yesterday, adding that the CS should also consider resigning.
“We are also going to call upon Njuri Ncheke so that they can maybe call on the Minister to apologise, failure to which he will be cursed the Meru way.”
He reckons the CS should not have blamed the County Director of Education or teachers for the untidiness of the school since subordinate staff are responsible for that.
He also pointed out that the ministry is yet to release money that would go towards paying subordinate staff.
His Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) counterpart, Mr Njoka Mutani, accused Prof Magoha of bulldozing matters in the ministry without consulting other stakeholders.
He said his actions in the video clip have been interpreted by his peers to mean that the CS has no respect for the teaching fraternity.
Knut Tharaka branch official Ndia Gwatia said unionists from the region will mobilise teachers to demand removal of the CS if he will not have left office or publicly apologised to the entire teaching fraternity by January.
Prof Magoha, however, has doubled down on his comments and insists that he will not change the way he works.