More than 500 teachers who are members of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) have already applied to be returned to their home counties.
KNUT revealed this on Tuesday saying that 547 teachers had called on the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to transfer them back to their former schools.
In the past week, the union had revealed that it had agreed with the Commission to reverse delocalization.
KNUT also directed its 110 branch secretaries to compile a list of teachers who wanted to be returned to their former schools.
On the other hand, the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) revealed that the compilation of the list was being done by their branches.
The delocalization program affected around 6,000 teachers which led to the tutors being moved away from the schools that they were serving.
The KNUT Secretary-General, Collins Oyuu said that despite the small number of applicants, more teachers will follow suit.
“Not many of our members have already submitted their applications for consideration to have themselves assisted. We have data of others who provided the required information and have not been re-routed due to logistical issues at a personal level.
We are also aware of the fact that many of our other members have submitted applications online. We trust that with close follow-up with TSC, which we shall do, we shall have all of them assisted,” he said.
KUPPET members have only two months to apply for delocalization. The policy had affected mostly heads of institutions and even their deputies.
Oyuu also said that KNUT wants to be at the centre of future policies.
“KNUT must be given its rightful place at the table of planning, formation, and implementation of policies that affect our members. If we had sat with TSC about delocalization, it would not have gone to this extent,” he added.
This is following the weakening of the union under the former KNUT Secretary-General Wilson Sossion whose dispute with the Commission led to him being deregistered as a teacher and the union’s membership being shrunk significantly.