Speaker Wetangula Puts the Brakes on William Ruto Education Reforms

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula on Wednesday dealt a blow to Kenya Kwanza's plans for education reforms without parliamentary approval.

Wetang'ula ordered Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu to freeze the report's implementation on the recommendations of the Presidential Task Force on Education Reforms until Parliament has an opportunity to consider and endorse it. The directive came after Emuhaya MP Omboko Milemba complained that the government's implementation of the report's recommendations was unconstitutional. Wetang'ula called on the majority leader Kimani Ichung'wah to conduct a thorough inquiry into the matter and deliver a conclusive report to the House in the next fourteen days.

According to Article 94(5) of the Constitution, only Parliament has the authority to make laws in Kenya. Ichung'wah stated that the Education Cabinet Secretary can only make recommendations and present them to Parliament for consideration. Omboko warned that implementing the report without Parliament's input could lead to conflict with education sector stakeholders. Omboko contended that the report suggested a need to reconsider the grading system for pre-service teachers, a decision that he cautioned could undermine the authority of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) as outlined in Article 237 (3) of the Constitution.

According to the article, the TSC is responsible for assessing the educational standards and training of individuals entering the teaching profession, evaluating the supply and demand of teachers, and providing guidance to the national government on matters pertaining to teaching. Other recommendations in the report, which the Emuhaya MP Omboko Milemba found objectionable, included the Ministry of Education's proposal to establish a unified school system that oversees all levels of education within a single institution.

Additionally, the report suggested that the Ministry of Education should handle the recruitment of staff for special education institutions, a move that Mr Omboko believes goes against the principles of the Constitution.
He also raised concerns about a proposal granting the TSC the authority to hire chaplains and imams for schools, arguing that it directly contradicts Article 9 of the Constitution, which upholds the separation of "the state and religion" and replaces the power of sponsors in schools with that of the TSC.

Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkong'a raised concerns about a growing pattern in the country where committees make recommendations and enforce them as law without involving Parliament. Chepkong'a emphasized that no one, regardless of their perceived power or status, including Cabinet Secretaries, should believe they can create regulations without presenting them to Parliament.