Tension is high at the Kenya National Union of Teachers headquarters and insiders now say there is a looming fallout and serious power struggle over last week’s State House meeting and ahead of the December by-elections with two camps now emerging. Secretary general Wilson Sossion who was last week locked out of the State House meeting chaired by Uhuru Kenyatta and attended by William Ruto is leading the camp that is opposed to the new deal brokered last week between the government and Knut while another camp is led by national chairman Mudzo Nzili who led the Knut team to State House. Details of how Sossion was blocked from State House meeting have now emerged. State House placed a call inviting top Knut leadership to the meeting and sources say instructions were clear that he should not be part of the delegation. This was based on a statement he delivered in Kisumu where he alleged that teachers and their families will never vote for Jubilee in 2013. The statement did not go down well with Uhuru and Ruto and declined to have a round table meeting with him. The Knut team was led by Nzili, acting national treasurer John Matiang’i, Hesbon Otieno (acting deputy secretary), Wycliffe Omucheyi (vice-chairman) and two women’s representatives – Dorothy Muthoni and Jacinta Ndegwa. At the State House meeting, Nzili asked for time to consult the union’s steering committee which comprises all the national officials and on leaving State House, Nzili personally called Sossion and asked for an urgent meeting and Sossion agreed that the National Steering Committee to hold an emergency meeting at Sagret Hotel. Sources divulged that at the Sagret Hotel meeting, Sossion was briefed on the government’s offer to teachers which Sossion is said to have rejected and maintained that the union should not accept the offer but to proceed to the Supreme Court to appeal. The rest of the steering committee members differed with him and a vote was taken and it was unionimous with only Sossion and Hesbon Otieno saying teachers should reject the State House offer and proceed to Supreme Court. After the vote, Sossion is said to have threatened to quit the union leadership claiming that State House has compromised his colleagues. He went on to brag that Nzili and his allies would go nowhere with the State House negotiations because he was in charge and the agreements cannot be implemented without his blessings. But Nzili in a quick rejoinder said that Sossion’s stance over a Supreme Court appeal was personal, not a union position and that teachers should accept Uhuru’s offer with open heart. What surprised Sossion is the fact that all the National Steering Committee members have fallen out with him and can only count on Otieno. The rebellion at Knut House is so big that after the State House meeting, he turned to social media and on the Whatsapp Knut Rift Valley region group, Sossion threatened to quit the union, saying: “I should quit. I have endured enough and seen enough.” Later in the evening, a tweet from his account said: “I have asked the national treasurer, national chairman to calculate and prepare my benefits.” What is worrying is why Sossion feels betrayed by his colleagues who brokered the deal with State House since this was not the first time union officials were being hosted by the president. The late Ambrose Adongo led a Knut delegation to then president Moi’s Kabarak home to break a deadline, Francis Ng’ang’a also led a Knut delegation to State House same as the late Okuta Osiany. Ironically, Sossion had led Knut delegation to State House to meet Uhuru more than three times since Jubilee came to power and one wonders why this time he has distanced himself from the visit. Teachers now want him to respect the tradition and practice. It has now emerged that Sossion is set to resign in December following the fall out. Sources well versed with his operations now say that he has been confiding in his allies that he will do all within his powers to ensure the December by-elections is not held. We have information that Knut’s national executive council meeting held last month resolved that the annual delegates conference be held in the first week in December at Safaricom Stadium Kasarani where main agenda will be the by-election. He has however vowed to scuttle the ADC-based on the fact that Knut was broke to host the ADC. Last week, it was a big shock to him when Uhuru gave an executive order compelling TSC to release all the union deductions immediately. This therefore means that he will have nothing to cling on to postpone the elections. The fear is that Sossion is fronting for Hesbon Otieno for the position of deputy secretary general against the wishes of many including majority of national officials who are secretly supporting the Nairobi Knut national treasurer John Mbate whose candidature has sent cold shivers down the spine of Sossion and Otieno. A survey conducted last week shows that Otieno is having a headstart in Siaya and Kisumu counties, they are neck-and-neck with Mbate in Homa bay and Migori counties while Mbate is leading in Kisii and Nyamira counties. In Sossion’s Rift Valley where he has of late been meeting rebellion, Mbate is rated above Otieno same as in Central, Nairobi, Eastern, Coast while they are also head to head in Western. Last week, sources said Sossion confided in his allies that should Mbate beat Otieno then he will resign immediately after the elections because he cannot imagine working with Mbate. He claimed that Mbate is a hardliner who cannot be armtwisted to dance to his tune and that he needs a loyal and harmless deputy like Otieno. Sossion is known to be nursing serious political ambitions in 2017 as he had confided in his close allies that he will cut deal with Bomet governor Isaac Ruto, Gideon Moi and Nick Salat to form a formidable force in 2017. Sources say Sossion will be Ruto’s running mate for the Bomet gubernatorial race in a party ticket of the new party the two are said to be contemplating forming. One thing he has assured his people is that he cannot run on Jubilee ticket since he has fallen out with Uhuru and Ruto. The problem between DP Ruto and Sossion started after 2013 elections when Sossion believed he was to be appointed Education cabinet secretary but Ruto dropped him and he has never forgiven the DP. The big problem according to sources is that Sossion fears that Mbate is an ambitious man who if becomes his deputy will vie against him for the top seat in next year’s national elections unlike Otieno who will be satisfied by being a deputy. Although Mbate has never declared that he will contest against Sossion in 2017, pressure is pilling on him across the country to go for it. It has also emerged that Knut House is not happy with the manner Sossion has handled the NHIF matter especially on the new rates which teachers are opposed to. During a Nec meeting, it was resolved that Sossion should pull out of the NHIF board as a way of forcing NHIF to rescind the decision to increase the rates. After the meeting, it was expected that he would write a letter but to date, he has continued to sit on the NHIF board earning a weekly allowance of Sh150,000. Interestingly, NHIF board sits every week. On the AoN Minet insurance deal, there have been whispers that Sossion secretly supports the deal while he opposes in public. Word has been spreading along the corridors of Knut House that Aon Minet had promised Sossion shares should he agree to the deal. It is however not known he has been given shares worth how much. Teachers across the country have reacted angrily on Sossion’s threats of resigning with some turning to social media urging him to resign immediately. Already a list is circulating in the social media on the 2016 line up with Nzili as the chairman, Mbate secretary general, Collins Oyuu deputy secretary general, James Nduku assistant treasurer and John Matiang’i as the national treasurer. The race for the asssiatnt secretary general has attracted two candidates both from Siaya county. The Rarieda branch executive secretary Collins Oyuu is considered a frontrunner against his Siaya counterpart Clement Omollo who has not come out to officially declare his candidature. Both Omollo and Otieno are considered Sossion projects and are facing serious rebellion since teachers have formed a precedent of voting out candidates allied to him as was witnessed during the by-election for the assistant treasurer position in which Matiangi beat his project Sam Nyairo and during the Nairobi branch by-election in which his preferred candidate Njenga Mungai was trounced by Mugwe Macharia who was supported by Mbate. Already teachers are celebrating Uhuru’s orders directing TSC chiefs that the teachers’ September pay be released and that all pending court cases be withdrawn in court over the dispute so that talks on a new CBA to cover four years could be kick-started and completed within a month.
In Sossion’s Rift Valley where he has of late been meeting rebellion, Mbate is rated above Otieno same as in Central, Nairobi, Eastern, Coast while they are also head to head in Western. Last week, sources said Sossion confided in his allies that should Mbate beat Otieno then he will resign immediately after the elections because he cannot imagine working with Mbate. He claimed that Mbate is a hardliner who cannot be armtwisted to dance to his tune and that he needs a loyal and harmless deputy like Otieno. Sossion is known to be nursing serious political ambitions in 2017 as he had confided in his close allies that he will cut deal with Bomet governor Isaac Ruto, Gideon Moi and Nick Salat to form a formidable force in 2017. Sources say Sossion will be Ruto’s running mate for the Bomet gubernatorial race in a party ticket of the new party the two are said to be contemplating forming. One thing he has assured his people is that he cannot run on Jubilee ticket since he has fallen out with Uhuru and Ruto. The problem between DP Ruto and Sossion started after 2013 elections when Sossion believed he was to be appointed Education cabinet secretary but Ruto dropped him and he has never forgiven the DP. The big problem according to sources is that Sossion fears that Mbate is an ambitious man who if becomes his deputy will vie against him for the top seat in next year’s national elections unlike Otieno who will be satisfied by being a deputy. Although Mbate has never declared that he will contest against Sossion in 2017, pressure is pilling on him across the country to go for it. It has also emerged that Knut House is not happy with the manner Sossion has handled the NHIF matter especially on the new rates which teachers are opposed to. During a Nec meeting, it was resolved that Sossion should pull out of the NHIF board as a way of forcing NHIF to rescind the decision to increase the rates. After the meeting, it was expected that he would write a letter but to date, he has continued to sit on the NHIF board earning a weekly allowance of Sh150,000. Interestingly, NHIF board sits every week. On the AoN Minet insurance deal, there have been whispers that Sossion secretly supports the deal while he opposes in public. Word has been spreading along the corridors of Knut House that Aon Minet had promised Sossion shares should he agree to the deal. It is however not known he has been given shares worth how much. Teachers across the country have reacted angrily on Sossion’s threats of resigning with some turning to social media urging him to resign immediately. Already a list is circulating in the social media on the 2016 line up with Nzili as the chairman, Mbate secretary general, Collins Oyuu deputy secretary general, James Nduku assistant treasurer and John Matiang’i as the national treasurer. The race for the asssiatnt secretary general has attracted two candidates both from Siaya county. The Rarieda branch executive secretary Collins Oyuu is considered a frontrunner against his Siaya counterpart Clement Omollo who has not come out to officially declare his candidature. Both Omollo and Otieno are considered Sossion projects and are facing serious rebellion since teachers have formed a precedent of voting out candidates allied to him as was witnessed during the by-election for the assistant treasurer position in which Matiangi beat his project Sam Nyairo and during the Nairobi branch by-election in which his preferred candidate Njenga Mungai was trounced by Mugwe Macharia who was supported by Mbate. Already teachers are celebrating Uhuru’s orders directing TSC chiefs that the teachers’ September pay be released and that all pending court cases be withdrawn in court over the dispute so that talks on a new CBA to cover four years could be kick-started and completed within a month.