Politician and businessman Kiprop Buzeki has called on the UDA administration to uphold transparency in the recruitment of 20,000 new teachers, warning that any political interference would compromise integrity and deny qualified graduates a fair shot.

In a statement shared on X on Friday, June 27, 2025, Buzeki described the teacher internship programme as a critical lifeline for thousands of unemployed educators across the country, urging the government to ensure the process is merit-based and insulated from political patronage.

“Don’t let politicians hawk these slots like favors from their pockets,” he wrote. “Let the process be public, fair, and competitive. No backdoor deals.”

His remarks come amid growing debate over teacher recruitment reforms, following Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba’s announcement of sweeping changes aimed at aligning teacher training with job market realities.

Speaking at the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) conference on Wednesday, June 25, Ogamba said the government would now regulate admissions into teacher training colleges based on projected staffing needs, a move intended to curb the oversupply of trained but jobless teachers.

“There are an estimated 62,000 trained teachers currently unemployed,” Ogamba said. “To address this, the government plans to recruit at least 24,000 teachers in the upcoming financial year, pushing the total number hired in the past two years to 100,000.”

The CS further outlined plans to expand learning infrastructure such as classrooms and science laboratories to support the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system.

He also announced that all education institutions will be required to transition to electronic procurement (e-Procurement) by July 1, 2025, as part of efforts to enhance accountability and curb corruption in school spending.

While Buzeki welcomed the government’s efforts to address teacher unemployment, he emphasized that the recruitment process must be transparent and free from political manipulation.

“This is your opportunity to demonstrate commitment to meritocracy, not reward sycophancy,” he said, noting that Kenya’s youth are closely monitoring how the process unfolds.