A member of parliament of Kimilili, Didmus Barasa offended teachers with comments accusing them of utilizing the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) to eradicate chickens from homes.
Collins Oyuu, secretary general of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), retorted that the remarks degraded teachers and impeded meaningful connection with the community.
“Our focus is on utterances made by one Didmus Barasa, MP for Kimilili.” “We feel aggrieved by his words, which are disrespectful, demeaning, and cast aspersions on teachers,” Oyuu said.
In addition, the unionist advised other parties against making such substantial yet problematic claims.
The Secretary-General demanded an apology from the politician, citing the derogatory tone of the remarks against teachers.
“Alluding that due to CBC, teachers have consumed all the chickens from the homes, and saying that in the Western region, where chicken is regarded highly is regrettable,” Oyuu added.
Additionally, he invited disgruntled parents and other stakeholders to bring their complaints to the attention of the task team.
“The public must be reminded that KNUT dissented to the roll-out of the said curriculum without the participation of stakeholders.”
“We all know what happened afterward. This is the ultimate price we paid for CBC,” he stated.
Barasa made the remarks while attending a funeral in Bungoma after images of students butchering hens were posted online.
As part of an experiment, he said pupils slaughtered chickens, and teachers took the chickens home after the lesson.
A number of Kenyans have requested that the government reconsider the implementation of the CBC curriculum.
President William Ruto has already pledged to organize a task force to investigate CBC to reevaluate it.
The pioneer class of CBC is already in sixth grade, and the candidates are scheduled to take a national exam in December before transferring to junior high schools in January 2022.
