NAIROBI, Kenya- The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has moved to distance itself from the growing controversy over the issuance of teacher employment letters by politicians, insisting that the recruitment and employment of teachers is exclusively its constitutional mandate.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Commission said remarks attributed to National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula suggesting that President William Ruto issues TSC employment letters to Members of Parliament were “not true and misleading.”
The clarification comes amid mounting public concern over the apparent involvement of political leaders in distributing teaching jobs.
Wetang’ula sparked the controversy after saying that some MPs are taken to State House, where they receive up to 10 TSC employment letters from President Ruto for distribution to teachers in their constituencies.
He further revealed that some politicians sell the opportunities for as much as Sh400,000.
The Speaker’s remarks have since triggered demands for evidence and investigations into the alleged practice.
Several MPs have challenged him to explain how the letters supposedly reach Parliament and how the recruitment arrangement operates.
The TSC, however, has now sought to draw a clear line between the Commission’s legal mandate and the claims surrounding State House and MPs.
It cited Article 237(2)(b) of the Constitution, which assigns the Commission responsibility to “recruit and employ registered teachers.” It also pointed to Regulations 55 and 56 of the TSC Code of Regulations for Teachers, 2015, which provide for recruitment and the issuance of offers of employment.
“Accordingly, all TSC employment letters are issued by the Teachers Service Commission in accordance with the law and applicable recruitment guidelines,” the Commission said.
The statement further stressed that neither the President nor MPs have the mandate to issue TSC employment letters.
The controversy is particularly striking because it follows months of public appearances in which politicians have been seen promising or presenting teacher employment opportunities to constituents.
Reports earlier this year also documented complaints from teachers’ representatives over politicians allegedly distributing TSC employment letters, with the Kenya National Union of Teachers raising concerns about the fairness of the practice.
In a previous incident, teachers at State House Girls High School were absorbed into permanent and pensionable employment after President Ruto directed the TSC to act following a visit to the institution.
TSC’s own online recruitment system states that the Commission advertises vacancies, allows qualified teachers to apply online and enables applicants to track the process through to appointment.
The system also explicitly states that applicants do not need to submit hard copies and that no payment is required.
The Commission is currently recruiting teachers for the August 2026 intake, with 20,000 permanent and pensionable Junior Secondary School vacancies advertised and applications running from August 18 to August 31.
The contradiction between the formal recruitment system and the increasingly public political claims about teacher jobs has left thousands of unemployed teachers demanding clarity.
For many trained teachers who have spent years waiting for employment, the issue goes beyond politics. It touches on whether access to a public job depends on qualifications and an open recruitment process—or on proximity to political power.
TSC said it remains committed to “transparency, fairness and integrity” in the recruitment and employment of teachers.
